The Summer 2019 Immigration Law conference hosted by AstenJ was by far their best event yet. The conference took place on 06 July 2019 at the BPP University in Holborn. The event carried a whopping 6 CDP points for all those attendees who sacrificed their Saturday to be present.

The event was chaired by Richard McKee (Rtd Upper Tribunal Judge) who is a familiar face to all those who frequent AstenJ events. Judge McKee opened the conference with a warm welcome speech and then went onto present Samina Iqbal, a Barrister at Goldsmith Chambers and a part-time Judge to the Immigration and Asylum Chamber, who gave the first talk of the day.

Samina Iqbal concentrated her talk on the do’s and dont’s of EU Settled Status Applications. With Brexit on the loom, immigration advisers across the country are trying to decipher the chaos that is being created by Britain’s exit from Europe. Samina clearly and succinctly clarified what immigration advisors should pay attention to when grappling with the new settlement scheme which has now been scaled out nationwide. This would have been a useful segment for any immigration advisor who is faced with helping European migrants living in the UK.

After a delightful tea break, Judge McKee went onto present the second segment of the morning which gave attendees a comprehensive update on immigration law. These immigration law updates by Judge McKee are usually the most valuable element of an AstenJ conference and are always highly appreciated by attendees.

Sarah Pinder, a Barrister from Goldsmith Chambers and a part time First-Tier Tribunal Judge came on next. Sarah Pinder is a familiar face at AstenJ conferences and she delivered a highly useful lesson on how to successfully claim your costs in the Tribunal. The subject of costs is still fairly new in the Tribunal system and some immigration advisors are still trying to understand how it all works. Sarah gave a highly comprehensive guide on how to successfully claim your costs in the Tribunal and in the High Court.

The Seminar then had a wonderful lunch break where attendees were treated to a delicious Asian style meal. AstenJ are the only professional training providers that give their customers a free lunch and they don’t hold back at all!

After lunch, we were graced by Lawrence Youssefian, another Barrister from Goldsmith Chambers. Lawrence is highly experienced when dealing with migrants who are facing
deportation as a result of criminal convictions. This is sometimes the toughest part of an Immigration Advisors work and Lawrence’s talk provided some useful tips when dealing with such cases. Lawrence also took the time to reviews s.117B following KO (Nigeria) and the subsequent cases.

Once Lawrence had finished Richard McKee took to the stage once more to continue his talk on Immigration Law updates. His talk focused heavily on the new digital format that immigration applications have taken – new territory for all of us it seems.

After a short tea break, we heard from Dr Anton van Dellen, a renowned Barrister from Goldsmith Chambers who educated attendees on EEA post-conviction deportation. This is a hot topic for most immigration practitioners. Even though the day was nearing its end the attendees were interested and engaged as the speakers managed to capture the attention of the room.

AstenJ have once again pulled off a fantastic seminar. They are by far one of the best training providers around. Their courses are highly useful and relevant and should not be missed by any serious Immigration Practitioner.