The immigration team in Goldsmith Chambers is proud to announce its partnership with Fenix Humanitarian Legal Aid, an NGO based in Lesvos, Greece. We champion Fenix’s mission of seeking to provide accurate and timely legal information and advice to all asylum seekers and refugees in Lesvos.
The refugee ‘crisis’ saw over 1 million asylum seekers arrive onto Greek shores between 2015 and 2016. Migrants continue to arrive on the island on a daily basis. Lesvos, positioned mere minutes from Turkey, receives one of the highest numbers of asylum seekers of all the Greek islands. Several of those arriving have not had, and continue not to have, access to basic legal information about the right to transfer to the mainland or their rights to transfer to other EU member states under the Dublin Regulations. As a result they are marooned in deplorable conditions on the island having timed out of making transfer applications.
Through this partnership, the immigration team will provide necessary support to the field team in Lesvos. Members of the team are encouraged to volunteer their time and expertise on the ground in Lesvos. Additionally our immigration team will be providing much needed remote assistance and support to Fenix lawyers on the ground. This will include legal drafting and the provision of advice on country information and returns policies throughout the EU. We hope that this partnership will exponentially increase migrants’ access to accurate legal information and advice.
