Lam Legal Successfully Appeals “Sham Marriage” Decision By Immigration Officer, Resulting In Visa For Foreign Spouse Of Canadian Citizen

March 09, 2024 at 00:41 AM EST

One Canadian couple is finally getting to start their happily ever after together in Vancouver after winning an appeal of denied entry with the help of a team of aggressive immigration lawyers who frequently challenge rulings such as these.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Vancouver, British Columbia, March 8, 2024— Lam Legal Trial Lawyers, a group of premier immigration lawyers, have recently won an important immigration case on behalf of their clients, a Canadian citizen and her husband, a foreign national from Africa. Their success in the case paves the way for the couple to start their lives together with all of the rights, privileges, and opportunities that go with being married in the great nation of Canada.

Initially, the Canadian citizen was unfairly denied the opportunity to bring their foreign spouse from Africa to Canada with a marriage visa because the Immigration Officer in the foreign country decided that it was a “sham marriage” – that the couple was faking their relationship in order to obtain Canadian citizenship.

Marriage is one way that foreign nationals can enter Canada legally, which is why marriages between citizens and foreign nationals are often highly suspect by the immigration authorities. In order for a couple to obtain a marriage visa in order for a spouse who is not a Canadian resident to enter the country legally, they have to provide extensive documentation about their relationship, undergo an interview process, and more. Immigration officers may conduct in-person visits to people’s homes and question friends and family members about the relationship.

In this case, the presiding Immigration Officer decided that this particular marriage was fraudulent and rejected the couple’s application for a spousal visa. The couple retained Lam Legal to appeal the decision with the Immigration Appeal Division.

Lawyer Karen Bastow, lead counsel on the case, prepared written submissions with over 70 pages of evidence about the relationship and a written argument challenging the legality of the decision. The firm pushed the matter to a hearing.

Halfway through the hearing, with oral witnesses well-prepared, the Immigration Appeal Panel Member asked the lawyer for Immigration Canada if she had changed her position. Shortly after lunch, the Immigration Appeal Panel ruled, based on the evidence filed and the oral testimony given, that the marriage was genuine and not an attempt to secure Canadian citizenship.

“Our firm’s preparation of the case and of the witnesses beforehand allowed the panel to cut the hearing short and render a decisive decision in our client’s favour. We are so proud to reunite this family,” says Ada P. Lam, Principal Lawyer at Lam Legal Trial Lawyers, about the case.

The divorce lawyer is always willing to challenge decisions made in the foreign jurisdiction by immigration officers on any kind of visa or other application to enter Canada, and they are also willing to take appeals to judicial review where there is the right to do so. They will make sure that they get all the evidence necessary to pursue clients’ appeals and prepare witnesses that help their clients’ cases.

For one couple, Lam Legal’s tenacity in standing up for the genuine nature of this couple’s love changed their future.

About Lam Legal:

Lam Legal – Trial Lawyers is an elite law firm serving clients in Vancouver in a range of legal matters related to immigration, estate administration, and business litigation. For more information related to the firm or to book a consultation with a family lawyer, visit https://lamlegal.ca/.

Media Contact:

Ada P. Lam, Barrister

(604) 259-2588

alam@lamlegal.ca