About This

CALS Asylum Case Research

Introduction

This page describes some basic sources for research on behalf of individuals seeking asylum in the United States. It was designed for use by students at the Center for Applied Legal Studies (CALS), the asylum law clinic at Georgetown University Law Center. However, this page is also being provided to the public through the Internet. It was developed and is maintained by the librarians of the John Wolff International and Comparative Law Library at the Georgetown University Law Center.

Most of the links available from this Guide are accessible online without charge, though a few of the links are to subscription databases and are available only to their subscribers. Also, not all reference sources pertinent to asylum cases are online. Therefore, this Guide also includes references to useful print materials and CD ROMs. All call numbers and locations refer to the location of materials at the Georgetown University Law Library.

General Research Tips

A good deal of the research you will be doing involves locating legal and factual information in various countries. While there are many tools to assist you, there are a few things to consider before you jump in.

  • Consider the time period. This is important when deciding which resources to search. If you are dealing with situations before 1996, searching free websites may not be productive. Most of the information posted on the web does not go back that far.
  • If you located something useful on the web, bookmark it, download it or print it off. There is no guarantee that the material or the site will be there the next day.
  • When using the web, determine the quality of information you find. Consider some of the following: objectivity, expediency, timeliness, accuracy, authenticity, and scope.
  • You will need to consult both legal and non-law sources. For researching country conditions, you will need to consult non-law sources such as newspapers, journal articles, directories, yearbooks, etc. This includes verifying spelling (alternate spelling) or names, and determining the exact name of organizations and political parties. If you need legal information (national legislation, international instruments, case law), you may need to search difference sources.
  • If you are researching factual information, you will have to slough through many resources to even locate a nugget. You may have to use a combination of resources. Some of the best information may be buried in an article or a report. The only way to locate the information is to review the material carefully.
  • Not everything is available on the web. Some of the tools you will use will only identify possible sources and then you will need to go to a print version and read through the material.
  • Don't forget people and organizations. You may need to email or pick up the phone.
  • Keep in mind, no matter how hard you look, you may not find anything.
  • Do not hesitate to contact one of the librarians in the Wolff Library. To schedule an appointment simply email or give us a ring at (202) 662-4195.

Country Conditions

Main Sites

  • Asylumlaw.org
    A site with several kinds of materials, including human rights reports on several countries by the governments of the UK and other countries. It provides resources for case support, legal research, and links to other relevant sites. There is also a meta-search engine called Super-Search which allows users to search multiple websites and resources at once. The site now includes about 40 information packets on country conditions from the Human Rights Documentation Exchange. They can be found by browsing the documents in the Case Support section. Briefs, an expert witness database, and a discussion forum are available by registering on the site. Registration is free.
  • Refworld
    Finally available on the web! Refworld is vast collection of country information, reports, policy documents, national legislation, maps, position papers, case law, and much more. The simplest method to access information is to use the country name and then use "filter" to refine the results. Use the advanced search screen for more targeted research. The Special Features portion of the welcome screen offers topics such as children, women, refugee status determination, and internally displaced persons (IDPs).
  • Country of Origin Research (Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada).
    Extensive research collected by the Canadian government on human rights abuses in many countries. The site includes Issue Papers and Extended Responses, and a section called recent research. The Responses to Information Requests (RIRs) database is a compilation of responses to requests for information submitted to the Research Directorate in the course of the refugee protection determination process. These questions are very similar to CALS research. RIR reports prior to 2003 are found on Refworld website above.
  • UNHCR Research/Evaluation Country of Origin and Legal Information (UNHCR)
    Much of the information on this website has migrated to Refworld, but use the advanced search screen to access UNHCR documents, news stories, press releases, and other relevant material.
  • Forced Migration Online
    Forced Migration Online is a comprehensive resource coordinated by the Refugee Studies Centre at the University of Oxford with the help of international advisors. The group includes under the term of "forced migration" displacement due to war, development, and disaster. Documentation can be accessed using the button menu for regional resources, thematic resources, and working papers. FMO is building a digital library using the specialized collections of institutional partnerships and provides full text searching and access to these documents. Research guides are also provided for several jurisdictions. A very good resource.

Resource Information Center
Asylum Division, U.S. Citizenship & Immigration Services

The Resource Information Center (RIC) serves both Asylum Officers and Refugee Adjudicators and is responsible for the collection, production and distribution of materials regarding human rights conditions around the world. RIC is neutral between USCIS Counsel and applicants' representatives and its officials are very friendly and helpful. They produce some excellent reports that can be found on the Department of Homeland Security website. This website has recently undergone changes and it is very difficult to navigate. Some reports can be found under Asylum Resource and check all three series. Also, try searching for these reports using advanced search entering the country name and limiting to resources.

RIC is located at 20 Massachusetts Avenue, NW.  It is technically not open to the public, but in practice, it permits representatives of asylum applicants to visit by appointment. To make an appointment, call 202-272-1656.

Advocates should be polite in dealing with RIC staff and respect their need to do their own work even though they may be willing to answer your questions. Also, RIC staff prefer that advocates not phrase questions to staff members adversarially. It is more appropriate to ask "Do you have some materials on guerrilla movements in Peru?" and not "How could I argue that my client's brief participation in a guerrilla movement in Peru should not bar asylum?" The RIC collection includes reports, periodicals and yearbooks by all of the major human rights groups; the manuals for Asylum Officers training courses; boxes on particular subjects such as "homosexuals" and "gender issues"; and very detailed country conditions information organized by country such as:

  • Index Media Reviews, produced by the Canadian government. These are all of the current media reports, downloaded weekly from Nexis, on Algeria, Bangladesh, Bosnia, China, Croatia, El Salvador, Ghana, Guatemala, Haiti, India, Iran, Israel, Lebanon, Nigeria, Pakistan, Peru, Romania, Russia, Somalia, Sri Lanka, Ukraine, Venezuela, Yugoslavia and Zaire.
  • Newspapers and magazines on human rights conditions in many countries and regions. Some of the most recent issues may not yet have been shelved, so do ask for help.
  • For each country, a book called "A Country Study" (e.g., "Angola: A Country Study"), which, although outdated for country conditions, includes good information on what groups and nationalities exist in the country and is therefore useful in making claims of persecution based on nationality .
  • Boxes for each country in the world with very detailed published information about human rights abuses in those countries. If there are recent cables from US Embassies containing information that may be relevant for asylum cases, those cables will be in the country box.
  • The latest State Department updates of "country condition profiles," and this may be the only place in the country where they are available. Even those that eventually make it to the Refworld come to the RIC long before they are on Refworld.

Reports (government, IGO, NGO)

News Sources

  • Westlaw has several useful databases for news research. These databases are quickly found by entering the database name in the "search these databases" box on the left side of the screen or by clicking through the directory menu.
    • INTNEWS Combination database that includes full-text, English-language articles and English-language abstracts for non-English-language sources with news and business information from newspapers, magazines, trade journals, newsletters, and news services. Coverage varies by publication. (directory > international/worldwide materials > multi-national materials > business & news). Note: the default date limit is the past three years. Be sure to specify an earlier date range if needed.
    • WNC (World News Connection) An online foreign news service from the U.S. government offering an extensive array of translated and English-language news and information. Compiled from thousands of non-U.S. media sources around the world, World News Connection covers significant socioeconomic, political, scientific, technical, and environmental issues and events. Coverage begins with 1995. Also available via the library's subscription.
    • ALLAFRICACOM Covers political, economic, and social developments in Africa. Coverage begins 01/2000. There is also ALLAFRFR for searching African news in French. (directory > international/worldwide materials > sub-saharan Africa > regional materials > business & news).
    • AFP-ENG (Agence France Presse English Wire) Full-text articles in English relating to national, international, business, and sports news, distributed worldwide. Begins with October 1999. There is also an Agence France Presse French AFP-FR available for searching in French. (directory > international/worldwide materials > multi-national materials > business & news).
  • Lexis has news sources accessible from the News & Business tab. From there, select Country & Region (excluding U.S.). Coverage and news sources vary depending on the region and country.
  • Ethnic News Watch
    Full-text bilingual (Spanish and English) collection of newspapers, magazines and journals of the ethnic, minority and native press. Includes articles editorials, columns, and reviews which provide a broad diversity of perspectives and viewpoints.  Coverage is back at least to 1994. (GULC only)
  • Human Rights Tools
    This is a new website for human rights professionals that provides links to 300+ human rights resources. For CALS researchers, some of the most relevant material includes a portal page of Resources for Country Analysis, a human rights news headlines page that tracks Human Rights Watch, AI, Jurist, Reliefweb and others, and an email newsletter.
  • Africa Action Documents relevant to African countries. Incorporating Africa Policy Information Center.
  • All Africa.com Current stories only - see Westlaw [above] for archived news.
  • Online Newspapers Provides links to newspapers from all over the world. Good resource for learning which newspapers exist in a particular country. See also Newspaper Links (select "International Newspapers").
  • FBIS Daily Reports (Foreign Broadcast Information Service)
    (microfiche 1979 - 1996, CD-ROMs 1997-2004)
    FBIS is a collection consisting of translated broadcasts, news agency transmissions, newspapers, periodicals and government statements from nations around the globe. Use the FBIS Electronic Index to locate relevant documents in the microfiche. For news after 1996, FBIS continued on CD-ROMs. These CD-ROMs may be viewed, and its news may be described and cited in briefs, but copyright permission from the originating source must be obtained before it can be downloaded or printed. The CD-ROMs are available behind the Wolff Circulation desk and they can be difficult to use. FBIS is also continued in part by World News Connection [see Westlaw above]. The CD-ROM can be viewed at any U.S. Depository Library, including the Georgetown University Law Library.

Other Useful Databases

  • AccessUN
    Readex United Nations Index is a comprehensive index of current and retrospective (1945 - current) U.N. documents and publications. Some full-text documents are available. (GULC only)
  • United Nations Official Document System (ODS) is a fully searchable electronic repository for UN materials which offers full text documents issued since 1993 along with resolutions and decisions adopted by the General Assembly, the Security Council, the Economic and Social Council, and the Trusteeship Council since 1946. Documents are presented in image format with easy printing. This website provides us with invaluable and speedy access to UN documents.
  • University Of Minnesota Human Rights Library
    Provides links to over 800 web sites and full text primary human rights treaties, instruments, and reports. The Refugee and Asylum Resources section and the list of country conditions reports are particularly helpful.
  • HURISEARCH
    This is a human rights search engine developed hy Human Rights Information and Documentation System (HURIDOCS) and searches 3000 human rights web sites indexing only those pages with a main focus on human rights.

Journals & Indexes

Journal articles can a very useful for documenting county conditions. Westlaw and Lexis provide full text coverage of American law reviews, but you should also consider searching European legal and non-legal journals listed below. Also, you may need to use indexes which are more comprehensive than the full text databases on Westlaw and Lexis. For other indexes, see the Library's journal indexes page.

  • Cambridge University Press Journals
    Full text access to journals published by Cambridge University Press. Search by title, abastract, or by full text. You can also limit by journal title or subject. Some relevant subjects besides law include African studies, history, latin american studies and history.
  • Oxford University Journal Press Journals
    Online access to journals covering legal, regional affairs, social sciences, and other subjects. Search by title, abastract, or by full text. You can also limit by journal title or subject.
  • Index to Legal Periodicals and Legal Resource Index two indexes that are more comprehensive the full text on Westlaw and Lexis. These are not full text, so you can be somewhat general with your search terms.

Want to find out if you can get electronic access to a journal article through the library? Check the E-Journal Finder! From the library homepage, it's the first link under Quick Links. The E-Journal Finder even tells you if a journal is available on Lexis and Westlaw. To use the E-Journal Finder, type in the name of the journal, and see what sources will give you full-text electronic access. If we don't have the journal electronically, check the library catalog for a print version or request the article through interlibrary loan.

Resources on Torture

Resources on Gender

  • International Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission (IGLHRC)
    As part of their Asylum Documentation Program, IGLHRC links to country packets that include country-specific materials documenting country conditions the affect the LGBT population. The country packets are on the AsylumLaw.org website (see above).
  • Center for Gender and Refugee Studies Human rights issues involving women.
  • Gender Watch
    GenderWatch is a full-text database of publications that focus on the impact of gender across a broad spectrum of subject areas. GenderWatch supports programs in business, education, literature and the arts, health sciences, history, political science, public policy, sociology and contemporary culture, gender and women's studies and more. Publications include academic and scholarly journals, magazines, newspapers, newsletters, regional publications, books, booklets and pamphlets, conference proceedings, and government, NGO and special reports.  Some of the materials in this database date back to the 1970's. (GULC only)
  • Contemporary Women's Issues
    More than 1500 sources published by over 200 organizations around the world dealing with women's issues in over 190 nations. Coverage begins with sources from 1992 with more than 150 periodicals in addition to non-periodical source publications.

Other Useful Sites

  • International Boundaries Research Unit (Durham University) Researchers interested in country conditions in areas where there are boundary disputes may find this site useful. It includes articles and other documents organized by disputed boundary (e.g. Burma-Thailand, Eritrea-Ethiopia).
  • ReliefWeb

Foreign Legislation & Cases

Information on foreign citizenship and immigration laws can be useful in asylum research. The Law Library collects primary legal materials for some countries, but also acquires secondary sources for many other jurisdictions. The sources below are a good starting point to locate resources. For extensive information on researching foreign law, please see our Foreign and Comparative Law Research Guide.

  • Foreign Law Guide
    This guide is the primary source for information on the sources of law for many foreign jurisdictions. It provides the researcher with relevant information on sources of foreign law, including complete bibliographic citations to legislation, the existence of English translations whenever possible, and selected references to secondary sources in English. It is arranged by country and includes an introduction to the legal system of that country as well as the availability of codes, session laws, and court reports. Each chapter contains a section arranged by subject that outlines the major laws for a given subject and provides references to English translations, when available. (GULC only)
  • World Legal Information Institute (WorldLii)
    This web site is joint project of several academic legal information institutes providing access to resources from over 120 countries. The simplest way is to click on all countries and select the specific country of interest. Then, see what is available under the topics legislation, courts & case law, and parliament to see what is available. Alternatively, you can search by database across jurisdictions.
  • Constitutions of the Countries of the World (CCW)
    This database contains the full text of constitutions (in English) from 190 countries, plus introductory and historical notes. Best used with Internet Explorer and please log off when finished. The print edition of this is available in the library. For older constitutions, come to the Wolff reference desk as the library does maintain an archive of the print version. (GULC only)
  • Refworld Legal Collection
    This section of Refworld has an impressive collection of foreign legislation often translated into English and in pdf. Coverage varies by jurisdiction. Select country for easy access.
  • Michigan Refugee Case Law Site This site, prepared by the University of Michigan Law School, collects and indexes cases on refugee and asylum issues from the highest national courts of Austria, Canada, Germany, New Zealand, Switzerland, the United Kingdom, and the United States. For searching case law, use the Guided Search page.

Immigration Law & Procedure

Electronic Resources

  • AILA (American Immigration Lawyers Association) CD-ROM. Electronic immigration resources. Available in the CALS library.
  • Lexis
    The following immigration materials are available on Lexis under All Sources > Area of Law - By Topic > Immigration.
    • Foreign Affairs Manual - Visas & Citizenship & Nationality
    • INS Interpretations
    • Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996
    • Immigration Case Reporter
    • Immigration Law and Procedure
    • Immigration and Nationality Act
    • BIA Decisions
    • Bender's Immigration Bulletin
    • Bender's Immigration Regulations Service
    • Bender's Immigration and Nationality Act Service
  • Bender's Immigration Bulletin Daily Edition
    This immigration news site features immigration-related news articles from wire sources ("Outside News"), court decisions, agency memos and more ("Inside News"), and editors' blog. Also includes links to free caselaw, LexisNexis immigration publications and additional articles. Search options, archived materials and an email notification make this new site user-friendly.
  • Executive Office for Immigration Review Virtual Law Library
    This web site includes, among other law, the Board of Immigration Appeals' precedent decisions; an alphabetical subject index of those decisions; and copies of some (but not all) of the "indexed" Board decisions, with the annotation that these "indexed" decisions have not been published and accordingly have no value as precedent. The decisions were indexed to provide internal guidance, and are offered here to the public as a courtesy. Citation to unpublished decisions is disfavored by the Board. There is no index to the "indexed" decisions. The site also includes a word-searchable version of the Immigration and Nationality Act, and links to recent immigration-related notices in the Federal Register.
  • Foreign Affairs Manual
  • National Immigration Project of the National Lawyers Guild
  • List of Countries and Territories Participating in the Hague Convention
    Abolishing the Requirement of Legalization for Foreign Public Documents (U.S. Dept. of State Office of Authentications)
  • Citizenship Laws of the World (U.S. Office of Personnel Management)
    This website tells you which countries permit dual citizenship.
  • TRAC Immigration Reports
    Maintained by TRAC (Transactional Records Access Clearinghouse), a data gathering and research center associated with Syracuse University, these reports cover a variety of topics, including felonies and deportation, immigration courts, and the asylum process.

Print Resources

These materials are available to CALS students in the CALS library. Many of them are also available in the Law Library.

  • Gordon, Mailman and Yale-Loehr, Immigration Law and Procedure KF4819 .G62 1988 This is a multi-volume looseleaf service, updated periodically, that is the most highly regarded general work on immigration law. You may find it particularly useful if your case takes you beyond the narrow confines of asylum law.
  • American Immigration Lawyers Association, Immigration & Nationality Law Handbook KF4819.A2 A415 Two volumes, published annually. An excellent analysis of complex aspects of immigration law, with particular attention to recent developments.
  • Ira Kurzban, Kurzban's Immigration Law Sourcebook KF4819.3 .K87 2004
    A quick, one-volume outline of immigration law, accurate but not as thorough as Gordon, Mailman and Yale-Loehr or, for the topics covered, the AILA Handbook.
  • Interpreter Releases KF4700.A15 A54 This is a weekly publication with the latest developments in asylum law and practice. It is kept in a binder in the CALS Library and is also available in the Law Library.
  • Bender's Immigration Bulletin KF4819 .G62 1988 Periodic updates of new developments, similar to Interpreter Releases but sometimes with more detail on particular topics.
  • Immigration Project of the National Lawyers Guild, Immigration Law and Crimes KF4819 .I472 1984 This book is an excellent resource to use in determining whether your client's criminal conduct or conviction(s) will affect his or her immigration status.
  • Immigration Project of the National Lawyers Guild, Immigration Law and Defense KF8925 .E4 N37 1987 This book provides a good overview of how an immigration case proceeds through the administrative and judicial systems. It covers a broad variety of cases and issues, including adjustment of status, removal proceedings, citizenship and naturalization.

Asylum Law & Procedure

Electronic Resources

  • Michigan Refugee Case Law Site This site, prepared by the University of Michigan Law School, collects and indexes cases on refugee issues from the highest national courts of Austria, Canada, Germany, New Zealand, Switzerland, the United Kingdom, and the United States. For searching case law, use the Guided Search page.
  • Asylee Eligibility for Resettlement Assistance - Updated Guide 2007
    Catholic Legal Immigration Network, Inc. (CLINIC) recently updated its short guide to asylee eligibility. The guide is designed to give service providers the tools and information needed to address the barriers to resettlement and integration faced by asylees and to better assist their clients. The guide contains crucial and timely information about the benefits and services for which asylees are eligible, including job placement assistance, English language classes, health screening, cash assistance, social security cards, employment authorization cards, adjustment of status, I-94s, travel authorization, petitioning for immediate relatives, and federal student financial aid.
  • Migration Information Source - Asylum Data Tools
    A hard data site with an interactive interface that can help you answer the questions: How many asylum seekers are there? Where are asylum seekers going? and Where are asylum seekers coming from?
  • Human Rights First - Refugee Protection
    A good site for general current awareness, HRF produces various reports on asylum topics. The site also includes letters, statements, memoranda and recommendations that have been included in communications with the DOJ, BIA, DHS and other governments entities.
  • Decisions of the Federal Courts and the Board of Immigration Appeals. Published decisions are text-searchable on Lexis. Use the IMMIG library and the CASES file (or you can elect just court decisions or just BIA cases, if you wish). BIA precedent decisions after October 1996 are also available on the website of the Executive Office for Immigration Review, but searching is easier in Lexis or Westlaw. BIA Precedent Table, which compiles headnotes from BIA precedent cases organized by topic, is also available.
  • Well Founded Fear
    Shari Robertson and Michael Camerini have produced a PBS documentary on the affirmative asylum process entitled Well Founded Fear. The film and its companion web site provide useful insights into the operation of the INS Asylum Offices. By clicking on the "Your Decision" button, one can step into the shoes of an Asylum Officer to review an actual case. There are also links to some web sites on country conditions. The main page also includes three serialized stories illustrating the challenge facing asylum applicants, including one case prepared by CALS Fellow Virgil Wiebe (with colleague Sciencia Fleury).

Print Resources

  • Regina Germain, AILA's Asylum Primer : A Practical Guide to U.S. Asylum Law and Procedure (4th ed.) KF4836 .G37 2005
    This book is a good basic asylum guide. It includes a nice overview of the asylum process, flags issues, examines U.S. asylum law, and includes practice pointers, sample documents, checklists, charts and resources. It should not be used as a substitute for in-depth treatises on asylum and refugee law.
  • Deborah Anker, The Law of Asylum in the United StatesKF4836 .A96 1999
    The book summarizes the substantive law, including statutes, regulations, case law, and international law. We also have Volume III of the 2nd ed (1994), which includes favorable unpublished decisions of the Board of Immigration Appeals and indexes of the case law through 1993. Unfortunately, this volume has not recently been updated.
  • Lawyers Committee for Human Rights, Representing Asylum Applicants KF4836 .L35 1995 Another asylum law manual. It's not as extensive as Winning Asylum Cases, but it undoubtedly has some material not in that publication.
  • David A. Martin, Asylum Case Law Sourcebook : Master Index and Case Abstracts for U.S. Court Decisions (5th ed.) INTL REF KF4836.A53 M37 2005
    This book has abstracts (with citations to the full cases) of every federal court decision in an asylum case from 1980 through 2004. It is organized by year but indexed by issues decided, countries involved, and case names. A master list of categories appears in the front. Unfortunately, it does not include any decisions (published or unpublished) of the Board of Immigration Appeals. Note also the caveat in the pre-introduction, warning that some cases have been overruled by court decisions or the 1996 statute. Finally, keep in mind that it does not include the many decisions favorable to asylum-seekers decided by Courts of Appeal, especially the Ninth Circuit, after 1997.
  • Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, Handbook on Procedures and Criteria for Determining Refugee Status INTL K3230.R45 H36 1992
    A guide to the definition of "refugee" under the 1951 Convention. (It is not binding on U.S. judges, but it is often persuasive.) This handbook is also available on the UNHCR web site. Note that some provisions of the Convention have been further interpreted by decision of the Executive Committee. These decisions are posted on the UNHCR web site.

Government Information

Key Government Entities

Government Forms and Instructions

General Immigration
Asylum Application
Removal Hearing
Post-Adjudication

Interviewing, Counseling, Fact Investigation and Other Practice Skills

The CALS library has many fine books on legal skills. Only those most relevant to our work are listed here. Most of the books are also available in the Law Library.

  • Gary Bellow and Bea Moulton, The Lawyering Process Williams KF282 .B4 1978
    Probably the greatest book ever written on how to do the things lawyers do (followed by hundreds of questions about whether they make sense, and whether they are ethical). Fine chapters on interviewing, case planning, fact gathering, counseling, and other aspects of practicing law.
  • Robert M. Bastress and Joseph D. Harbaugh, Interviewing, Counseling, and Negotiating Williams KF311 .B37 1990 This book is used in a large number of law school courses on these subjects, throughout the country.
  • Peter Murray, Basic Trial Advocacy Williams KF8915 .Z9 M87 1995 This book systematically examines the rationales underlying the various trial techniques, in order to teach law students to understand why trial lawyers do what they do and design their presentations based on this knowledge, rather than copy standard practices. It is focused on the presentation process during the trial itself, and emphasizes the centrality of ethical decision-making in trial practice.
  • David A. Binder and Susan Price, Legal Interviewing and Counseling : A Client-Centered Approach Williams KF311 .B5 1977 Before the publication of Bastress and Harbaugh, this was the leading book on legal interviewing and counseling. It seeks to present a model in which lawyers let clients do more of the leading than many lawyers typically permit.
  • David A. Binder and Paul Bergman, Fact Investigation : From Hypothesis to Proof Williams KF8935 .B5 1984 A model (complete with many charts) of how to think about and organize the search for facts in order to win a case.
  • Steven Lubet, Modern Trial Advocacy : Analysis and Practice (2nd edition) Williams KF8915 .L82 1997 This book, published by the National Institute for Trial Advocacy, stresses the importance of theory and analysis in the trial process. Rather than providing "recipes" for the various parts of a trial, this book emphasizes the many ways to think about the delivery of argument, the presentation of evidence, and the development of ideas at trial.
  • Thomas A. Mauet, Trial Techniques (6th edition) Williams KF8915 .M38 2002
    A leading book on how to present a case in court. It includes formulas for meeting all possible evidentiary objections, many of which are not necessary in asylum cases. On the other hand, it also has plenty of good advice on how to present a persuasive case through witness testimony and how to use cross-examination effectively.
  • Physicians For Human Rights, Medical Testimony on Victims of Torture: A Physician's Guide to Political Asylum Cases (1991 note: library trying to obtain). This small (23 page, plus appendices) book is a useful guide for physicians who are asked to serve as experts in asylum cases, particularly those involving torture, and representatives working with such experts. But caveat: It was written before asylum "reform" and therefore out-of-date with respect to some procedures, and it was written before the issuance of the Fourth Edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders of the American Psychiatric Association, so its diagnostic categories are also out of date.
  • Veronika Kot, The Impact of Cultural Factors on Credibility in the Asylum Context (Immigrant Legal Resource Center, 1988). A discussion of intercultural factors that can inhibit effective interviewing and witness presentation.

Other Research Guides

Want more information about researching asylum law? These other research guides may help.

And don't forget: the Georgetown Law Library offers research guides on many other related topics on our In-Depth Research page (e.g. Immigration & Human Rights on the Internet, Refugee Protection, Human Rights, United Nations, Immigration Law (U.S.) and more!).


Revised September 2007 (ms)


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