Evelyne M. Hart

Evelyne Hart Came to America at 11—Now She Takes On the Cases That Decide Who Gets to Stay

For many attorneys, immigration law begins with statutes and procedure. For Evelyne M. Hart, it began at age 11, when she left Paris and immigrated to the United States. Long before she advised clients confronting deportation, denied petitions, or uncertain legal status, she understood what it meant to build a future in another country.

That experience now informs a career devoted to helping other immigrants secure their place in the United States. Hart established Hart Immigration in 2002 and has represented hundreds of clients from 98 countries. Her work has taken her before immigration courts, United States Citizenship and Immigration Services, the Board of Immigration Appeals, the Administrative Appeals Office, the Department of Labor, the National Visa Center, and United States consulates worldwide.

Hart is also a Certified Specialist in Immigration and Nationality Law through the State Bar of California Board of Legal Specialization. That designation is more than a professional title. California-certified specialists must demonstrate substantial experience, pass a written examination, complete advanced continuing education, and receive favorable evaluations from attorneys and judges familiar with their work. For consumers, it provides official confirmation that immigration law is not simply one service among many—it is the foundation of her practice.

Her removal-defense work demonstrates why that depth matters. Hart Immigration obtained cancellation of removal for one client with multiple drug convictions and another with multiple shoplifting convictions. Each faced a criminal history that placed the ability to remain in the country in jeopardy. The successful outcomes stopped their deportation and preserved the lives they had established in the United States.

One of Hart’s most unusual cases involved a stateless man in his 40s who faced deportability issues but potentially qualified for citizenship through his American father. Proving the claim was complicated by the fact that the father was then in his 70s and his military records had been destroyed. Hart Immigration overcame those evidentiary obstacles and established the client’s derivative United States citizenship. The result transformed his position from someone vulnerable to removal into a recognized American citizen.

Hart has also demonstrated an ability to recover cases after damaging beginnings. One client came to her after United States Citizenship and Immigration Services denied a petition filed without legal assistance. Hart helped the client obtain a green card during 2012 and later become a United States citizen in 2016. In another matter, she reopened a prior immigration case, obtained its termination after a single court appearance, and secured approval of the client’s permanent-residence application at the first interview without a request for additional evidence.

Her work under the Violence Against Women Act carries a different kind of significance. After other attorneys advised one client that obtaining permanent residence was impossible, Hart prepared a self-petition and secured a 10-year green card. That outcome gave the client more than lawful status—it provided independence and long-term security after an abusive relationship.

Past outcomes never guarantee what will happen in another case, but these matters reveal a practice capable of handling far more than routine immigration filings. They involve criminal histories, threatened deportation, missing evidence, previously denied petitions, domestic abuse, and disputed claims to citizenship—the kinds of complications that can determine whether a person remains with a family or is forced to leave the country.

Hart has also shared her immigration knowledge beyond her own office. She has lectured at Fullerton College and Western State University College of Law, served as an officer of the Orange County Bar Association’s Immigration Section, and volunteered with the California State University, Fullerton College Legal Clinic.

Evelyne Hart’s career brings her story full circle. She entered the United States as an 11-year-old immigrant and became an officially certified specialist entrusted with cases that can determine where people live, whether families remain together, and whether years of uncertainty end in removal or lawful status. For clients facing a difficult immigration history, her value lies in recognizing a viable path even when convictions, missing records, previous denials, or government opposition appear to have closed the way forward.

That combination of experience, reputation, verified professional standing, and public credibility is why Evelyne M. Hart was included on FreddieFender.com.