DEFENDING RIGHTS, PROTECTING COMMUNITIES, EXPANDING ACCESS TO LEGAL SERVICES FOR NH IMMIGRANTS (Fall 2026). For many noncitizens with low income in New Hampshire, access to free legal representation can be the difference between safety and danger, family unity and separation, or a secure future and sudden deportation. New Hampshire Legal Assistance (NHLA) has developed a comprehensive immigration practice to address the complex, urgent needs of noncitizens, particularly those who are detained or who otherwise are at risk of removal from the United States. NHLA provides legal representation, pro se (unrepresented) assistance, counsel and advice and legal information, and prioritizes work with noncitizens in ICE custody whose cases may lead to release from detention or protection from deportation, as well as particularly vulnerable people such as trauma survivors and parents of young children.

A central part of NHLA’s work is serving people held in immigration detention facilities in Dover and Berlin, New Hampshire. NHLA provides legal orientation programs at the Dover facility and provides individual consultations and representation for people detained at both facilities. Additionally, NHLA screens cases for referrals to other legal service providers throughout New England. NHLA has assisted hundreds of noncitizens in ICE detention. As immigrant detention in New Hampshire has dramatically expanded, access to legal help is increasingly difficult to obtain. NHLA has become a key source of support for detained noncitizens navigating extreme challenges in an evolving legal system.

Many people facing deportation are at high risk of lethal violence if deported to countries where they will be targeted because of who they are. Many also face permanent separation from their children. NHLA works to promote fairness, due process and access to justice for noncitizens who often have nowhere else to turn. Recent successes include: preventing deportations through emergency court actions; obtaining releases from detention; securing refugee status; and winning termination of removal proceedings for individuals who were eligible for lawful status in the United States, including United States citizens who were wrongfully detained by ICE.

NHLA collaborates extensively with other legal services providers, advocacy groups and community organizations throughout New England to respond to rapidly changing immigration laws and enforcement policies. Staff regularly provide legal information and training to community organizations, help coordinate regional responses to new immigration policies, and share expertise with other advocates working on behalf of immigrants. NHLA has helped families prepare for potential detention or deportation, supported individuals affected by expanded enforcement operations, and collaborated with partners on litigation strategies designed to protect the rights of noncitizens throughout the region, including impact litigation and appellate advocacy. By combining direct representation with extensive regional collaboration and community education, NHLA has strengthened protections not only for individual clients but also for immigrant families and communities across New Hampshire and New England.

In the image, Paralegal Liliana Neumann and Attorney Meg Moran before one of their visits to provide legal services to noncitizens detained at the Strafford County Jail in Dover, NH.

Clowes Fund Field(s) of Interest: Immigrant Services

Grantees