Diana Baxter

Wesley Gryk Solicitors maintains its top tier rankings for 2023

20th October 2022 By Diana Baxter

We are delighted to announce that Wesley Gryk Solicitors LLP continues to be ranked as one of the UK’s leading Immigration firms by both Chambers 2023 and the Legal 500 2023.

WGS is ranked as a Tier 1 firm by the Legal 500 2023 for ‘Immigration: Human Rights, Appeals and Overstay’ and by Chambers 2023 for both ‘Immigration: Human Rights, Appeals and Overstay’ and ‘Immigration: Private’.

All of our three partners, Alison Hunter, Barry O’Leary and Diana Baxter, are ranked as ‘Leading individuals’ by the Legal 500, with senior solicitor Katie Dilger listed as a ‘Key lawyer’.

Described by Chambers 2023 as a “fantastic firm”, partners Alison Hunter (“absolutely fantastic”) and Barry O’Leary (“truly outstanding”) are ranked as Band 1 lawyers in two immigration categories, and Diana Baxter (“a star lawyer in the ascendant”) is in Band 2. For private immigration work, senior solicitor Katie Dilger is an Associate to watch.

We are particularly proud of our fantastic testimonials this year:

‘They know their stuff like no-one else. At Wesley Gryk, clients are guaranteed to have a service which is second to none. They are at the top of their game in relation to tactics, case preparation, and expertise in the areas of immigration law they practice in. Briefs are always prepared to an exceptionally high standard.’

‘Besides the outstanding technical competence, the relationship with clients is very humane, which provides much needed reassurance and comfort during stressful moments.’

‘The level of expertise demonstrated by Wesley Gryk Solicitors was exceptional. Their lawyers provided excellent guidance, and a deep understanding of the Home Office was used with good impact.’

SBS Partnership Extended for Women Fleeing Gender-based Violence

31st March 2022 By Diana Baxter

We are pleased to announce the extension for another year of our partnership with Southall Black Sisters, a not-for-profit women’s rights organisation established to meet the needs of Black (Asian and African-Caribbean) women facing domestic and gender-related violence.

Under the partnership, SBS has funding to refer women who seek their assistance for legal advice and representation in immigration applications and appeals to experts in our team at Wesley Gryk Solicitors LLP. The partnership has been a great success during its pilot year in 2021, enabling us to represent women in immigration matters who are unable to access legal aid due to the nature of their immigration problem, but who cannot afford legal fees and disbursements.

In its pilot year, Wesley Gryk Solicitors LLP has advised and represented women fleeing violence from India, Pakistan, Jamaica and Zimbabwe. This has included: assisting victims of transnational spouse abandonment to return to the UK and obtain indefinite leave to remain as victims of domestic violence; assisting a woman with complex mental illnesses stemming from childhood sexual violence with a successful appeal under Article 3 ECHR based on her medical condition and risk of suicide on return overseas; and assisting a refugee fearing honour-based killing in Pakistan with a successful appeal to the Upper Tribunal following refusal at the First Tier Tribunal.

We look forward to another year working together with Southall Black Sisters to seek immigration solutions for women facing gender-related violence.

Retirement announcement

7th May 2020 By Diana Baxter

In these troubling and uncertain times, it is with mixed emotions that we announce the retirement of our Senior Partner and namesake, Wesley Gryk.

After 25 years at the helm, and in celebration of his 71^st birthday on 12 May 2020, Wesley will be retiring as Senior Partner at Wesley Gryk Solicitors LLP. Fortunately, he will continue to share with us his wisdom on an ongoing basis as an unpaid Consultant.

12 May 2020 will, undoubtedly, be a bittersweet day for the firm as we celebrate the achievements of our founder, who built the firm from scratch into the leading law firm that we are today (see here for a memoir of the early days).

In the past 25 years, Wesley has assisted numerous individual migrant and refugee families from across the world to navigate the bureaucracy of the UK’s immigration system, while more widely championing and promoting the rights of migrants in the UK. His legacy lies not only in the clients he has advised, but also in the generations of immigration solicitors / barristers he has trained along the way and who continue to uphold his exceptional standards of legal advocacy across the field of immigration law. In this period of state overreach, it is more pertinent than ever that we uphold this legacy in striving to maintain the rule of law, civil liberties and human rights.

Wesley’s achievements have been well documented by the Law Society in its recent Minority Report. Wesley is known for his exceptional commitment to his clients, his formidable knowledge across the broad spectrum of immigration law, and for his compassion. In particular, Wesley should be proud of his achievement with respect to the rights of LGBT+ migrants and the role he played in achieving recognition of same-sex relationships in immigration law.

We are not just Wesley’s firm, but also his ‘family’. And like many families right now, we are separated – unable to mark this momentous occasion together with the grandeur it so demands. And with the same commitment that Wesley has shown over the last 25 years to ensure our clients can be together in safety with their families, we will keep battling on remotely as his legacy and in anticipation of coming together again later this year (or perhaps more realistically early next year!) to give Wesley the send off he so truly deserves.

Thank you, Wes.

Open Letter Regarding Emergency Situation in Greece

25th March 2020 By Diana Baxter

“Protect our laws and humanity!”

Open Letter by 256 Organizations

To:

Prime Minister of the Hellenic Republic, Kyriakos Mitsotakis

President of the European Parliament, David Sassoli

President of the European Council, Charles Michel

President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen

Athens, 6 March 2020 – The undersigned organisations are deeply concerned about recent developments at the Evros border and the Aegean islands where people are stranded at the borders of Europe, instrumentalized for political purposes, and subject to violations of their rights. We are also deeply concerned about the way the authorities of Greece and the European Union are handling new arrivals. Equally alarming are the extreme actions by security forces against refugees and by civilians against staff of human rights and humanitarian organizations. We would also like to point out that the climate of panic and rhetoric of ‘asymmetric threat’ –also promoted by the authorities– does not reflect reality and seriously affects not only vulnerable refugees- but also our society and the rule of law as a whole.

[Read more…]

What measures could UKVI take now to help ‘flatten the curve’ while maintaining the immigration system?

17th March 2020 By Diana Baxter

Given the current Covid-19 crisis and need for us all to increase social distancing, the Home Office needs to issue clear and swift guidance to migrants in the UK on their position.

Such measures could include:

Temporary waiver on the need for biometric enrolment. By doing this, applicants could submit extension applications online and submit supporting documents, which can then be transmitted online to a Home Office caseworker, without the need for in-person interaction by the client, Sopra Steria employee or Home Office caseworker. A small number of appointments would need to be maintained for vulnerable clients who need scanning and online assistance.
Online temporary fee waiver application, that can be submitted at the same time as online visa application, to allow persons to remain lawfully present in the UK but who may not be able to afford the fees, especially in cases of redundancy / reduced hours as a result of Covid-19.
All NHS employees, paramedics and other essential service workers should be given automatic fee waivers.
Extension of automatic grant of leave to those currently in the UK but who cannot return overseas due to Covid-19.
End immigration detention to prevent the spread of Covid-19 throughout detention centres.

For now, the immigration tribunals remain operating as normal but with people advised to contact the tribunal if the appellant, sponsor, any witness or representative needs to self-isolate and so cannot attend.

Please contact us should you need advice at this time on your individual circumstances: contact@gryklaw.com