De Novo Immigration Advocate Wins Prestigious TUMI USA Award

Karen Bobadilla, a Department of Justice Accredited Representative at De Novo, has been awarded the prestigious TUMI USA Award. Karen was honored as a 2020 "Hero of COVID-19" in the Citizen category for her efforts in helping immigrants, domestic violence survivors, and asylum seekers in Massachusetts to obtain legal and financial support during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Now in its 25th year, the annual TUMI USA Award recognizes Peruvian immigrants who have overcome life challenges, worked tirelessly at their profession, and demonstrated an exceptional commitment to community service.

I was born and raised in the Constitutional Province of El Callao, on the outskirts of Lima, Peru. I attended the San Martin de Porres University School of Law, and I am a member of the Peruvian Bar. Working at De Novo inspired me to return to school. In 2016, I earned a Master of Laws (LLM) in Human Rights from Northeastern University by studying and working full time.

When I was hired in 2005, Valerie Fisk, De Novo's Immigration Supervisor, took me under her wing. She trained me as a paralegal and, with the rest of the legal team at De Novo, helped to petition the Board of Immigration Appeals to approve me as a fully Accredited Representative, which allows non-lawyers to represent immigrants before the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) and in immigration court. Back then, there were only three of us in the entire state with full accreditation.

My primary language is Spanish, so most of my clients are from Central and South America. Shared language and cultural competency is crucial given the sensitive nature of our cases. For several years, I specialized in VAWA and U-Visa applications for victims of domestic violence or crimes, and my work now focuses on helping immigrant youth apply for Special Immigrant Juvenile status.