Event Date
Lucas R. v. Becerra – A Landmark Win for Youth in Immigration Custody
Lucas R. v. Becerra challenged the federal government’s unconstitutional treatment of children in immigration custody. In November 2023, three groundbreaking settlements were reached which significantly expanded the rights of three classes of youth in immigration custody: youth with disabilities, youth prescribed psychotropic medication, and youth seeking assistance from legal counsel. The UC Davis Immigration Law Clinic and Co-Director Holly Cooper helped litigate the case to reach such a successful outcome.
Holly Cooper, Co-director of the Immigration Law Clinic, has extensive litigation experience defending the rights of immigrants and is a nationally recognized expert on immigration detention issues and on the immigration consequences of criminal convictions.
Cooper is a graduate of UC Davis School of Law, where she was on the Board of the King Hall Legal Foundation and an active member of the National Lawyers Guild.
After law school, Cooper worked for Reed Smith LLP (formerly Crosby, Heafey Roach & May LLP), The Law Offices of Fellom & Solorio, and the Florence Immigrant & Refugee Rights Project. As the Senior Staff Attorney at the Florence Project, Cooper initiated the Detained Immigrant Children’s Rights Project, provided representation and pro se assistance for adult detainees, and mentored pro bono attorneys.
Cooper joined the School of Law faculty in 2006. In the Immigration Law Clinic, she focuses on advocating for the rights of detained immigrants.
Cooper also trains lawyers on a national level and regularly speaks at academic conferences. She provides expert legal advice to public defenders and was the American Immigration Lawyers Association’s Liaison to the Office of the Chief Immigration Judge for two years. In the international domain, Cooper has worked on human rights issues in Haiti and has volunteered on multiple human rights delegations to Haiti since the earthquake.
Please contact Nina Bell at nbell@ucdavis.edu with any questions.