Kelsey Hatfield, Esq.

The immigrant population has always been near and dear to my heart. This holds true in the figurative sense, but also in the literal, as I spent most of my childhood being toted around Cheektowaga, just East of the city of Buffalo, by two Polish immigrants - my grandmother and her sister.

My work with Buffalo's new generation of immigrants began by chance in 2014, through a tutoring program for Somali Bantu children. As it goes, my original role as “tutor” morphed into a crash course immersion into Buffalo’s growing immigrant community. I got to know the children’s families, communities, culture, religions, struggles, and joys. Most importantly, I saw firsthand the unbearable stress of navigating the complex, contradictory, underfunded U.S. immigration system, and the dire lack of legal representation available to immigrants.

I entered law school blissfully unaware of how deep down the rabbit hole my career goal of ‘becoming a lawyer to help immigrants” would take me. I took on an internship, then an externship, then a role as a law clerk with the legal department of a nonprofit organization throughout school. After graduating and be sworn into the New York State Bar, I transitioned into an attorney role with the organization. As my practice turned more toward court work, I transitioned to the private sector to more effectively serve my clients. 

I count myself lucky to have seen both the nonprofit and private sector sides of immigration law, and even more so to have picked up two mentor attorneys along the way to whom I will forever be in debt. 

My combined experience has lead me to a trauma informed practice which adheres to the core values of honesty, transparency, and trust. I began my career with a caseload of primarily affirmative applications, namely refugee/asylee adjustment of status (green card,) temporary protected status, naturalization, and family based cases. After finding my passion for court, my practice shifted and is now focused on removal defense, both detained and nondetained cases. 

I still (and always will) live in Buffalo, New York, and practice primarily in front of the Buffalo, New York Immigration Court and Batavia Federal Detention Facility Detained Court.

Buffalo has been dubbed the city of good neighbors for good reason, and I see that in each and every one of my clients. I am honored to be part of their stories, and to welcome new neighbors to a city we love so dearly.