ABOUT OUR
LGBTQ+ IMMIGRATION
LAW FIRM IN CANADA

Our Mission statement:

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We provide expert, experienced,  client-driven legal services in all Canadian immigration and refugee matters.

 

Rooted in the 2SLGBTQI+ community, we provide a safe, non-judgmental, compassionate environment for our clients. No client should apologize for their history, their identity, or their fears. We celebrate diversity.

 

We believe the law operates best when it recognizes the diversity of human experience and allows it to flourish. This principle inspires our legal advocacy.

 

We are teachers and learners who believe the law should be accessible and comprehensible regardless of an individual's background.

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We Help Change Laws

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We have been involved in changing Canadian immigration law. We have appeared before the House of Commons and Senate to address changes to the definition of ‘family’ to include same-sex and queer families. We have appeared before Parliamentary Standing Committees on immigration issues to advocate to remove medical inadmissibility from Canadian law. We have appeared at every level of court in Canada, including the Federal Court of Appeal and Supreme Court of Canada. We regularly advocate for refugees and persons denied applications before the Immigration and Refugee Board. Click here to read about our important court cases.

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We are community leaders

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We work closely with community organizations to lead legal information seminars on topics related to refugees, sponsorship, appeals, risk assessments, removal orders, and other services to new immigrants. Our office was the birthplace of Rainbow Railroad, an international LGBTQ+ refugee support organization. We provide legal support to community-based organizations such as the 519 Church Street Community Centre, the Metropolitan Community Church of Toronto, the Committee for Accessible AIDS Treatment, EGALE Canada Human Rights Trust, and the Black Coalition for AIDS Prevention. Our perspective on immigration issues is frequently sought out by media. Review a selection of media articles here. 

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We are teachers

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We are adjunct faculty at the University of Toronto’s Faculty of Law and School of Public Policy and Governance, regularly provide papers and presentations at legal conferences throughout Canada and internationally and have authored a legal text on the intersection of immigration and family law. We authored a chapter in the first legal text entirely devoted to the practice of LGBTQ2+ law in Canada. 

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We are immigrants

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We are proud to have diverse staff who understand the immigrant experience. The migration experience is in our DNA.

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Our Founder, Justice Michael Battista

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With over 30 years’ experience practicing immigration and refugee law, Justice Battista was the founder of Battista Migration Law Group. In May 2024, he was appointed as a Judge for the Federal Court of Canada, leaving the firm in the capable hands of our new leadership team: Pablo Irribarra, Nicholas Woodward, Joycna Kang, and Mathew Wilton, along with our incredible support staff.

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Michael is co-author of:

 

• Canadian Family and Immigration Law: Intersections, Developments and Conflicts (Carswell),

• Family Class Sponsorship in Canadian Immigration Law (Emond),

• the immigration chapter in LGBTQ2+ Law: Practice Issues and Analysis (Emond).

 

Michael has appeared before the Supreme Court of Canada in the following cases: