REBECCA A. SHARPLESS University of Miami School of Law 1311 Miller Drive, E257 Coral Gables, FL 33146 (305) 284-3576 rsharpless@law.miami.edu EDUCATION HARVARD LAW SCHOOL, J.D., Cum Laude, 1994. Kaufman Public Interest Fellow Harvard Human Rights Journal, Articles Editor and Book Note Author CAMBRIDGE UNIVERSITY, M.Phil. in Philosophy, 1991. SWARTHMORE COLLEGE, B.A. in Philosophy, High Honors, Phi Beta Kappa, 1990. ACADEMIC WORK EXPERIENCE COURSES TAUGHT IN LAW SCHOOL: Immigration Law, Immigration Clinic, Immigrant Children s Justice Clinic, Immigrant Rights Externship UNIVERSITY OF MIAMI SCHOOL OF LAW Associate Clinical Professor of Law Director, Immigration Clinic 2009-Present Founder and director of an in-house, live-client clinic. Teach students who represent indigent immigrants in adversarial immigration court and federal appellate proceedings and work on human rights cases and other advocacy projects aimed at advancing the cause of immigrant rights. Teach classroom Immigration Law course. COLLEGE OF LAW, FLORIDA INTERNATIONAL UNIVERSITY Visiting Assistant Clinical Professor of Law, 2007-2009 Carlos A. Costa Immigration and Human Rights Clinic, Supervising Attorney, 2007-2008 Immigrant Children s Justice Clinic, Supervising Attorney, 2008-2009 Taught Immigration and Human Rights Clinic, an in-house, live-client clinic. Developed and taught Immigrant Children s Justice Clinic, an in-house, live-client clinic. Taught Immigration Law course. MIAMI-DADE COLLEGE Adjunct Faculty Member, Virtual College 2007 Taught Introduction to Philosophy course to undergraduate college students enrolled in Virtual College.
PUBLICATIONS Clear and Simple Deportation Rules for Crimes: Why We Need Them and Why It s Hard To Get Them, Denver Law Review (forthcoming). Removal Defense and Florida Drug Crimes: Applying the Categorical Approach, 35 th Annual AILA South Florida Immigration Law Update, February 2014. Teague New Rules Must Apply In Initial-Review Collateral Proceedings: The Teachings of Padilla, Chaidez, and Martinez, co-authored with Andrew Stanton, University of Miami Law Review, August 2013. Using a Human Rights Approach in Immigration Advocacy: An Introduction, co-authored with Robert Pauw and Judith Wood, Clearinghouse Review, July-August 2013. Chaidez v. US: An Old Rule in a First Federal Proceeding, Online Symposium, Nov. 5, 2012, available at http://crimmigration.com/2012/11/05/symposium-chaidez-v-us--an-oldrule-in-a-first-federal-proceeding.aspx. More Than One Lane Wide: Against Hierarchies of Helping in Progressive Legal Advocacy, 19 Clinical Law Review 347 (2012). The Duty to Advise of Immigration Consequences: The U.S. Supreme Court s Decision in Padilla v. Kentucky, Florida Defender, Fall 2010. Fitting the Formula For Judicial Review: The Law-Fact Distinction in Immigration Law, Symposium, 5 Intercultural Human Rights Law Review 57 (2010). Toward a True Elements Test: Taylor and the Categorical Analysis of Crimes in Immigration Law, 62 University of Miami Law Review 979 (2008). The State of the Categorical Approach to Criminal Convictions, co-author with Maria Andrade, Andres Benach, and Deborah Smith, Immigration and Nationality Law Handbook, 2009-2010 Edition, American Immigration Lawyers Association. Pulling a Rabbit Out of a Hat: Strategies for Helping Your Illegal or Visa Violator Client, 29 th Annual Immigration Law Update, South Florida Chapter, American Immigration Lawyers Association, 2008. No Abused, Abandoned or Neglected Child Left Behind: Overcoming Barriers Facing Special Immigrant Juveniles, co-author with Michelle Abarca, Lisa Lauck, and Deborah Lee, Immigration and Nationality Law Handbook, 2007-2008 Edition, American Immigration Lawyers Association. 2
OTHER WORK EXPERIENCE FLORIDA IMMIGRANT ADVOCACY CENTER Supervising Attorney Miami, FL 1996-2007 Supervising attorney and member of office management team. Responsible for federal litigation caseload and supervision of staff attorneys, paralegals, and law student interns. Lead counsel in immigration cases in the United States Courts of Appeals and United States District Courts. Presenter at national and local trainings and conferences, including trainings of judges, law clerks, and public defenders. Organizer of continuing legal education seminars on immigration topics, including asylum and immigration consequences of crimes. IMMIGRATION PROJECT NORTHWEST COMMUNITIES EDUCATION CENTER Director Granger, WA 1994-1996 Directed this nonprofit immigration project. Litigated cases in immigration court, supervised paralegals, conducted community outreach, engaged in fundraising, and conducted media and public relations. SELECTED SPEAKING ENGAGEMENTS (last five years) CrImmigration: Crossing the Border Between Criminal Law and Immigration Law, Symposium by Denver Law Review, Panel on Immigrants and the State Criminal Justice System, Feb. 6, 2015. Moderator, Asylum, Withholding, and CAT Cases, 2015 Conference, American Immigration Lawyers Association, South Florida Chapter, Feb. 5, 2015. In Defense of Unaccompanied Immigrant Children, Dade County Bar Association, Sept. 5, 2014. Challenges and Strategies Beyond Relief, Annual Conference on Immigration Law, American Immigration Lawyers Association, Boston, June 20, 2014. We Are Not Criminals : Immigration Reform, Racial Justice and Mass Incarceration, Law and Society Association Annual Meeting, Law and Inequalities: Global and Local, Minneapolis, May 31, 2014. Moderator, Intersectional Clinics, Immigration Law Professors Workshop: Reimagining Reform, University of California, Irvine, May 22, 2014. Waiving Inadmissibility for Crimes Under INA 212(h), Immigrant Legal Resource Center, Webinar, May 6, 2012. 3
Mindfulness and the Law School Clinic, American Association of Law Schools, Clinical Conference, Chicago, April 29, 2014. ICE Detainer Reform, Florida Immigrant Coalition, Webinar, April 23, 2014. Contesting Removability for Crimes, Innovative Immigration Defense, University of Miami, April 4, 2014. Immigration: In-Bound and Out-Bound/LGBT Couples and Families Traveling Abroad Duties of the U.S., Marriage Equality: Practical Implications for a Post-DOMA Landscape, Lecture Series, University of Miami School of Law, April 2, 2014. Constitutional Challenges, 2014 AILA Federal Court Litigation CLE Practicum, Las Vegas, February 28, 2014. Legalization: Navigating Muddy Waters, 35 th Annual AILA South Florida Immigration Law Update, Conference Materials, Miami Beach, February 6, 2014. The Promises and Pitfalls of Immigration Reform, 2013 Audrey R. Finkelstein UM Experience Lecture Program, University of Miami, Nov. 8, 2013. Facilitator, Human Rights Advocacy in the U.S.: A Training for Attorneys, Organizers and Other Public Interest Practitioners in the Greater Miami Area, August 16-17, 2013, Miami. Human Rights Advocacy: How It Works & How It Helps, Annual Conference on Immigration Law, American Immigration Lawyers Association, June 26-29, 2013, San Francisco. Deportability Issues, Overview of Naturalization, Catholic Legal Immigration Network & Catholic Charities Legal Services of Miami, June 21, 2013. Facilitator, Enforcement Abuses in the Context of Arrest, National Immigration Litigation Strategy Meeting, Legal Action Center, American Immigration Council, May 30, 2013. Immigration Enforcement and Our Advocacy, Florida Immigrant Legal Aid Alliance (FILLA), Conference, April 26, 2013, Orlando. BIA and Federal Court Update, Annual Conference, American Immigration Lawyers Association, South Florida Chapter, Feb. 8, 2013. Against Hierarchies of Helping, Reconciling Theory and Practice, Social Justice Feminism Conference, University of Cincinnati, Oct. 27, 2012. Cutting Edge Use of 212(h) Waivers, Criminal and Due Process Issues in Removal Proceedings, National Immigration Project, Pasadena, Oct. 10, 2012. 4
Hot Topics in Immigration Law, Southern Regional Conference, National Lawyers Guild, May 19, 2012. Against Hierarchies of Helping, American Association of Law Schools, Clinical Conference, Los Angeles, April 27, 2012. Law School Clinics and the Challenges of Emergencies, American Association of Law Schools, Clinical Conference, Los Angeles, April 26, 2012. The Government s Burden of Proof in Immigration Proceedings, Webinar, Immigration Advocates Network, Jan. 23, 2012. Immigration Law and Federal Courts, Staff Attorneys Office, U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit, Atlanta, Dec. 2, 2011. Against Hierarchies of Helping, Scholarship Forum, Stetson University College of Law, St. Petersburg, Florida, Nov. 12, 2011. Padilla v. Kentucky in Florida Courts, Miami-Dade County Bar Association, Seminar on Non-Citizens in Criminal Court, Miami, Nov. 17, 2011. Better Brief Writing, Better Litigation Results, Annual Conference, American Immigration Lawyers Association, San Diego, CA, June 17, 2011. Panelist, Hot Topics in Litigation, Moderator, What Is Left of the Element Analysis of Criminal Convictions? Annual Midwest Regional Conference, American Immigration Lawyers Association, Chicago, IL, Mar. 28, 2011 Facilitator, Immigration Proceedings, Detention, and Mental Health In-Service, Florida International University, Jan. 14, 2011. Keeping the Record Clean: The Categorical Approach, Theory and Practice, National Training on the Immigration Consequences of Criminal Convictions, Defending Immigrant Partnership, Albuquerque, New Mexico, Jan. 10-11, 2011 National Litigation Strategizing, On Their Own: Unaccompanied Immigrant Children, Dec. 9, 2010. The 5 th Annual Conference on Immigration Consequences of Crimes, Domestic Violence University, Domestic Violence Division of the Eleventh Judicial Circuit of Florida, Oct. 22, 2010. Padilla v. Kentucky: Noncitizens and the Immigration Consequences of Crimes, Office of the Miami-Dade Public Defender Carlos J. Martinez, Oct. 8, 2010. Moderator, Ethics in Immigration Law, Advanced Topics in Deportation and Removal Defense, National Immigration Project, New Orleans, Louisiana, Sept. 22, 2010. 5
"Padilla v. Kentucky: What It Means For Defense Counsel," Broward County Office of the Public Defender, June 2010. "Helping Noncitizens Who Have Criminal Histories," Orange County Office of the Public Defender, June 10, 2010. Why Must Defense Counsel Act? DePaul University School of Law, Immigration Law Professors Criminal Immigration Workshop, May 24, 2010. Immigration Consequences of Criminal Entanglement for the Business Immigration Lawyer, webinar, American Immigration Lawyers Association, May 6, 2010. Strategies for Overcoming Jurisdictional Bars to Judicial Review, Advanced Topics in Deportation and Removal Defense, National Immigration Project, Mar. 19, 2010. The Law-Fact Distinction and Judicial Review in Immigration Law, Symposium: U.S. Immigration Detention: Policy and Procedure from a Human Rights Perspective, Intercultural Human Rights Law Review, St. Thomas University School of Law, Nov. 6, 2009. Defense Expert Witness, State v. Ivanna Linick, Palm Beach County Circuit Court, West Palm Beach, Florida, Nov. 5, 2009. Moderator, Deportation and Removal Defense seminar, National Immigration Project of the National Lawyers Guild, Oct. 14, 2009. Immigration Consequences of Florida Crimes, seminar for assistant public defenders, Law Office of Carlos J. Martinez, Miami-Dade Public Defender, Sept. 17, 2009. Facilitator, Immigration Issues Facing Unaccompanied Immigrant Children, Representation to Realize Rights: A Summit on Counsel for Children in Miami, Sept. 11, 2009. Unaccompanied Immigrant Children, seminar for pro bono attorneys, Juvenile Pro Bono Committee of the South Florida Chapter of American Immigration Lawyers Association, Aug. 21, 2009. Asylum Law and Procedure, seminar for pro bono attorneys, Catholic Charities Legal Services and South Florida Chapter of American Lawyers Association, Aug. 14, 2009. The State of the Categorical Approach to Criminal Convictions, Annual Conference of the American Lawyers Association, June 6, 2009. 6
CONFERENCE ORGANIZING EXPERIENCE Member, Planning Committee, 2015 Emerging Immigration Scholars Conference, June 11-12, 2015, University of Miami School of Law Member, Planning Committee, Immigration Law Professors Workshop: Reimagining Reform, University of California, Irvine, May 22, 2014. Primary Conference Organizer, Innovative Immigration Defense, University of Miami School of Law, April 8, 2014. Co-conference Organizer, Immigration Damages Litigation, University of Miami School of Law, Jan. 11, 2013. Primary Conference Organizer, Immigration Law and Community, Symposium and Immigration Law and Deportation Defense: Intermediate and Advanced Topics, University of Miami School of Law, Oct. 29-30, 2010. Member, Planning Committee, Florida Immigrant Legal Aid Alliance Conference, April 26, 2013, Orlando. Member, Planning Committee, On Their Own: The 2nd Annual Conference on Unaccompanied Immigrant Children, two and a half day conference, co-sponsored by Florida Immigrant Advocacy Center and Miami-Dade College, May 2007. Primary Conference Organizer, Selected Issues in Immigration Law, one-day CLE training, co-sponsored by Florida Immigrant Advocacy Center and Florida International University School of Law, Dec. 2004. Co-organizer, Criminal Issues in Immigration Law, two-day CLE training, co-sponsored by Florida Immigrant Advocacy Center and Catholic Legal Immigration Network, Oct. 2003. BOARD AND COMMITTEE WORK Member, Board of Directors, American Immigration Lawyers Association, South Florida Chapter (elected position), Spring 2014-Present. Member, Amicus Committee, American Immigration Lawyers Association, 2010-Present. This committee is responsible for authoring amicus briefs to the U.S. Supreme Court, U.S. Court of Appeals, and Board of Immigration Appeals on behalf of the American Immigration Lawyers Association. Member, Board of Directors, National Immigration Project of the National Lawyers Guild, 2002-Present. Member of the Project s seminar committee, which helps plan seminars twice a year. 7
Member, Annual Conference Planning Committee, American Immigration Lawyers Association, 2012-2013. This committee is responsible for planning the deportation defense and due process track of the annual conference of the American Immigration Lawyers Association. Member, Continuing Legal Education Committee, South Florida Chapter of the American Immigration Lawyers Association, 2006-2007. Member, Technology Committee, Florida Bar Foundation, 2006-2007. Member, Advisory Board, Videoconferencing in Removal Hearings: A Case Study of the Chicago Immigration Court, by The Legal Assistance Foundation of Metropolitan Chicago and Chicago Appleseed Fund for Justice, 2005. APPOINTMENTS Special Master, Northwest Immigrant Rights Project (NWIRP), et al., v. USCIS, et al., No. 88-379 (W.D. Wash) (adjudication of appeals of class membership denials in lawsuit relating to legalization applications), 2013-present. SELECTED MEDIA APPEARANCES (last five years) Op-ed, Dade, Broward Lead the Way, Miami Herald, July 7, 2014. Sharpless on Defenses to Removal for Florida Drug Crimes, CrimProf Blog, Jan. 21, 2014, available at http://lawprofessors.typepad.com/crimprof_blog/2014/01/sharpless-on-defensesto-removal-for-florida-drug-crimes.html (posting abstract of article). Condado notifica al ICE sobre nueva política sobre detenciones, El Nuevo Herald, Jan. 18, 2014 (discussing new Miami-Dade County policy of not honoring ICE detainer requests). UM Law Students Protest Immigration Detainee Conditions, Daily Business Review, Nov. 21, 2013 (discussing the Clinic s concerns regarding detention conditions). Chaidez v. U.S.: Assuming Teague Applies, Padilla Announced a New Rule, Feb. 22, 2013, available at http://crimmigration.com. What Counts as a Teague New Rule? Supreme Court Hears Argument About Pre-Padilla Criminal Plea Involving Defense Counsel s Failure to Warn of Deportation, American Constitutional Society Blog, Nov. 1, 2012, available at http://www.acslaw.org/acsblog/all/rebecca-sharpless. Florida watches as Supreme Court set to hear state of Arizona argue immigration laws, by John Lantigua, April 22, 2012 (discussing the U.S. Supreme Court case Arizona v. U.S.) US Deportees Face Illegal Detentions, Health Risks in Haiti, by Jacob Kushner, The Miami Herald, Nov. 15, 2011 (discussing US deportation policy regarding Haitians). 8
Immigrant Song: I Don t Want To Leave, video by John VanBeekum, May 2011 (featuring UM Law s Immigration Clinic). Rebecca Sharpless 94 Leads Effort to Suspend U.S. Deportations to Haiti, by Joanne Wong, Harvard Law School News, February 29, 2011. Anger Over US Deporting Immigrants to Haiti, by Andres Schipani, Financial Times, Feb. 8, 2011 (discussing the decision of the United States to resume deportations to Haiti and the death of a deportee shortly after deportation). Human Rights Commission: Stop Deporting Haitians, Sun-Sentinel, Feb. 4 2011 (discussing the Inter-American Commission s issuance of precautionary measures urging the suspension of deportations to Haiti). Activists Seek End to US Deportations to Haiti, by Jennifer Kay, Associated Press, Feb. 2, 2011 (discussing deportations to Haiti and the death of deportee Wildrick Guerrier). S. Florida Latinos Fear Racial Profiling Immigration Debate, by John Lantigua, Palm Beach Post, May 2, 2010. Alternative Spring Break, WLRN, Under the Sun, by Alicia Zuckerman, Mar. 25, 2010 (discussing alternative spring break to help Haitians apply for temporary protected status). An American Dream Gone to Pot: Should Legal Immigrants Be Deported For Drug Possession, by Krista Gesaman, Newsweek, Jan. 7, 2010 (discussing the equity of deporting longterm permanent residents for relatively minor drug offenses). UM Law Students Contribute To An International Affair, by Sasha Ramshaw, MiamiHerald.com, Jan. 8, 2010 (discussing the new UM Law Immigration Clinic). UM Opens Immigration Clinic, The Florida Bar News, Oct. 15, 2009. Miami Law Clinic Aims to Help Immigrants, The National Jurist, Oct. 15, 2009. UM Law School Opens Immigration Clinic, The Daily Business Review, Sept. 24, 2009. AWARDS/RECOGNITIONS Spirit of Justice Award, FAMN Haitian Women of Miami, 2012. Human Rights Award, Alternative Chance/Chans Altenativ, 2007. Listed as Up & Comer attorney in South Florida Legal Guide, 2001. 9
Recognized for Outstanding Achievement and Shared Commitment, University of Miami School of Law, The Immigration Project of the National Lawyers Guild (student organization), 1997. 10