NILC Staff Biographies

Linton Joaquin, executive director, Los Angeles office.
Before assuming the position of executive director in 2004, Mr. Joaquin served as NILC's legal director, with primary responsibility for overseeing the litigation NILC brings to defend the rights of immigrants and refugees. Over the more than 25 years of his legal practice, Mr. Joaquin has gained national recognition for his expertise in immigration law and in litigation to preserve and promote immigrants' legal rights. He has served as lead or principal counsel in numerous class action lawsuits, such as Walters v. Reno, requiring the Immigration and Naturalization Service to comply with due process in charging immigrants with civil document fraud; Orantes-Hernandez v. Meese, prohibiting the INS from coercing a nationwide class of Salvadoran refugees into abandoning their right to seek political asylum, and requiring the agency to allow detained class members access to counsel and legal rights materials; and Perez-Funez v. District Director, enjoining the INS from having detained children waive their right to a hearing without first having access to legal advice. Prior to joining NILC in 1990, Mr. Joaquin served as executive director and director of litigation for the Central American Refugee Center (CARECEN) in Los Angeles, and staff attorney for the United Farm Workers of America, AFL-CIO. He also has taught immigration law on an adjunct basis at the University of Southern California Law School (1997) and Southwestern University School of Law (1991-1996). Mr. Joaquin holds a juris doctor degree from the University of California (Boalt Hall).

Marielena Hincapié, director of programs & staff attorney, Los Angeles office.
As NILC's director of programs, Ms. Hincapié manages the employment, public benefits, and immigration work of the organization; and she specializes in protecting and advancing the rights of immigrant workers. Ms. Hincapié has dedicated her legal career to protecting and advancing the rights of immigrant workers, particularly those who are undocumented. She writes articles and policy analyses, provides technical assistance, and presents trainings to legal and social service providers, labor unions, and community-based organizations. Her work also focuses on using legal tools to help support community and labor organizing efforts, as well as to help build and strengthen community coalitions working to improve working conditions for all low-wage workers. Ms. Hincapié litigates law reform and impact litigation cases dealing with the intersection of immigration laws and employment/labor laws, and specializes in cases following the Hoffman Plastic Compounds, Inc. v. NLRB decision. Before joining NILC, she worked for the Legal Aid Society of San Francisco's Employment Law Center, where she founded the center's Immigrant Workers’ Rights Project. Ms. Hincapié holds a juris doctor degree from Northeastern University School of Law.

Legal & Policy Staff

Sonal Ambegaokar, health policy attorney, Los Angeles office.
Ms. Ambegaokar monitors, analyzes and makes recommendations concerning federal, state and local policies affecting low-income immigrants' access to affordable health care. Prior to joining NILC in 2005, she served as supervising attorney of the Health Consumer Center of Los Angeles, a project of Neighborhood Legal Services of Los Angeles County, overseeing a multi-language consumer hotline that provides callers with help on a variety of health-related issues. Prior to her law career, Ms. Ambegaokar worked for several years as a business analyst. She earned her juris doctor degree from the University of California at Davis.

Josh Bernstein, director of federal policy, Washington, DC, office.
Mr. Bernstein monitors, analyzes, and makes recommendations regarding federal legislative and administrative developments affecting immigrants, particularly in the areas of immigration law and the employment and public benefits rights of low-income immigrants. Before joining NILC in 1994, he served as a judicial clerk to the Hon. Harry Pregerson of the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals. Mr. Bernstein's advocacy on behalf of low-income persons dates back to 1982, when he was Director of Californians for a Fair Share, a statewide coalition of low-income families and their allies that was formed to combat welfare cuts. He subsequently served as a welfare advocate for the Legal Aid Foundation of Los Angeles and the Inner City Law Center, a Los Angeles skid row legal clinic. Mr. Bernstein holds a juris doctor from the University of California (Boalt Hall).

Jonathan Blazer, public benefits policy attorney, Philadelphia.
Mr. Blazer's main focus is on promoting immigrant access to critical safety-net programs, particularly within state and local programs. Prior to joining NILC, he was a national coordinator of Project Voice, the nationwide immigrants' rights organizing initiative of the American Friends Service Committee. From 1997-2003, he worked as a legal services attorney in Philadelphia, where he specialized in welfare law and founded the Language Access Project of Community Legal Services. Mr. Blazer holds a M.A. in political theory from the University of Toronto, and a J.D. from Stanford Law School. Mr. Blazer lives and works in Philadelphia.

Tanya Broder, public benefits policy director, Oakland.
Ms. Broder focuses primarily on analyzing the ways in which federal, state, and local governments have been implementing the welfare and immigration laws passed in 1996. She writes articles and policy analyses, provides technical assistance, co-counsels litigation, and presents trainings to legal and social service providers, legislative staff, and community-based organizations. Before joining NILC in 1996 she worked as a policy analyst for the Northern California Coalition for Immigrant Rights and as a staff attorney for the Legal Aid Society of Alameda County in Oakland. Ms. Broder holds a juris doctor from Yale Law School.

Joan Friedland, immigration policy director, Washington, DC, office.
Ms. Friedland focuses on post-9/11 documentation, data base, and information-sharing policy issues affecting low-income immigrants. Before joining NILC in 2002, she had a long career as a lawyer for nonprofit organizations and in private practice in New Mexico and Florida, and has litigated many civil rights and immigration cases. Ms. Friedland holds a juris doctor from Harvard Law School.

Erika Madrigal, CHCI Fellow, Washington, DC, office.

Grisella Martinez, comprehensive immigration reform policy analyst, Washington, DC, office.
Ms. Martinez focuses on immigration policy issues primarily related to employment eligibility verification, Social Security benefits, state and local enforcement, and the DREAM Act. Her previous experience includes several years working in private practice on immigration consequences of criminal convictions and post-conviction relief in removal proceedings. She holds a juris doctor from The Catholic University of America and is currently completing a master of laws in administrative law and regulatory policy at American University in Washington, D.C.

Tyler Moran, employment policy director, Boise, Idaho.
Ms. Moran monitors and analyzes federal and state policies affecting low-income immigrants, focusing primarily on employment and driver's license policy, and educates key allies and policymakers on these issues. While overseeing NILC's employment issues-related work, she writes analytical, advocacy, and community education materials on issues affecting low-income immigrant workers in the U.S. She also provides technical assistance and training in her areas of specialty. Prior to joining NILC in 2002, Ms. Moran worked as a public policy consultant, and as the policy director for the Massachusetts Immigrant and Refugee Advocacy Coalition in Boston. She holds a master of education from Harvard University.

Karen Tumlin, staff attorney, Los Angeles office.
Ms. Tumlin focuses on promoting the rights of low-wage immigrant workers through litigation and administrative advocacy. Currently she is litigating cases challenging state anti-immigrant ordinances and federal immigration detention policies. Her practice also includes litigation on due process, detention, and employment issues. Before joining NILC as a Skadden Fellow in 2005, Ms. Tumlin clerked for Judge Dorothy W. Nelson of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. Prior to law school, she worked as a research associate at the Urban Institute, where she coauthored studies on immigration, welfare, and language access issues. She also spent a year as a Luce Scholar in Bangkok, Thailand, where she conducted a study on child trafficking in the region for the U.N. International Labor Organization. Ms. Tumlin holds a juris doctor degree and a master of public policy from the University of California at Berkeley.

Katherine Vargas, research associate, Washington, DC, office.
Ms. Vargas provides research support on current policy and legislation affecting immigrants. She also translates technical documents, press releases, and other program-related materials. Before joining NILC, Ms. Vargas helped promote immigrants' rights through her work at the International Rescue Committee and the Colombian-American Service Association in Miami, Florida. She interned at the Washington Office on Latin America, a nongovernmental organization that monitors the impact of U.S. foreign policy in Latin America. She holds a degree in international relations with a certificate in Latin American studies from Florida International University.

Dinah Wiley, public benefits policy attorney, Washington, DC, office.
Ms. Wiley focuses on preserving and broadening immigrants' access to health care and other critical public benefits and services. Before rejoining NILC in 2006, she had served since 2000 as senior civil rights analyst at the U.S. Dept. of Health and Human Services' Office for Civil Rights. She was a policy analyst at NILC from 1997 to 2000, specializing in public benefits issues affecting low-income immigrants and their family members. Prior to that, she was legal services director at Whitman-Walker Clinic, the largest HIV/AIDS service organization serving the Washington, DC, metropolitan area.

Administrative & Support Staff

Marisa Aguayo, grants manager, Los Angeles office.
Ms. Aguayo helps implement NILC's fund-raising goals. This includes developing fund-raising strategies, researching funding prospects and coordinating all development-related communications activities. Prior to joining NILC in 2004, she worked as a program director for the MultiCultural Collaborative, a social justice organization created after Los Angeles' 1992 civil unrest. Prior to that, she was a development associate for El Rescate, a legal and social services agency serving immigrants in Los Angeles.

Arron Castillon, human resources (temporary), Los Angeles office.

Richard Irwin, editor and publications manager, Los Angeles office.
Mr. Irwin edits and helps design and produce the written resources NILC publishes, both online and on paper. He has edited NILC's newsletter, Immigrants' Rights Update, since 1992. Prior to joining NILC in 1990, he worked as a development officer for St. Joseph Center in Venice, CA, and in the education department of Los Angeles Catholic Charities' IRCA Legalization Program. Prior to that, he taught English composition at Cal Poly Pomona and UCLA.

Lourdes Jamer, fiscal associate, Los Angeles office.

Jim Komagata, director of finance and administration, Los Angeles office.
As NILC's director of finance and administration, Mr. Komagata oversees all of NILC's fiscal and administrative functions. Areas of responsibilities include managing the accounting department, human resources, grant budgeting, and financial reporting. Prior to joining NILC, he worked for many years in financial management in nonprofit human services organizations. He is a graduate of the University of Hawaii, with a degree in Business Administration.

Bianca Marquez, administrative assistant, Los Angeles office.

Mike Muñoz, program coordinator, Los Angeles office.
Mr. Muñoz coordinates and monitors NILC's training activities. Working with the publications manager, he designs and produces materials intended for print and on-line dissemination, focusing on the production of community education materials. In addition to assisting with the maintenance of management information, he provides support to NILC and CIWC project staff, specifically on issues relating to trainings coordination. Prior to joining NILC in 1997, he worked as an organizer and field director for La Colectiva in East Los Angeles, and as an organizer for Service Employees International Union Local 399 in Los Angeles.