Maggio+Kattar

Each year, Maggio + Kattar donates the proceeds of its annual Founders' Day benefit to an organization that represents our and our firm's founders', Michael Maggio and Candace Kattar,  dedication to immigrants, equality, and human rights. 

Join us on March 28, 2012 for our Fourth Annual Founders Day Benefit

This year we will be honoring Immigration Equality at our fourth annual Founders Day Benefit which will be held on Wednesday, March 28, 2012 at our offices from 5:00 to 7:00pm. 

Immigration Equality is a national non-profit organization fighting for equality under U.S. immigration law for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and HIV-positive individuals.  It serves as an information clearinghouse, giving LGBT foreign nationals and their loved ones up-to-date information about immigration law via trainings, informational materials, and by answering email and telephone inquiries.   In addition, it runs a pro bono asylum project to assist LGBT and HIV-positive asylum seekers to find free or low-cost legal representation.   It also provides technical assistance to attorneys who are working on sexual orientation, transgender identity, or HIV status-based asylum applications, or other immigration applications where the client’s LGBT or HIV-positive identity is at issue in the case.

Importantly, Immigration Equality advocates for changes to immigration laws that discriminate against LGBT and HIV-positive individuals and their loved ones.   We join them in their mission of working towards full equality under the immigration law without regard to sexual orientation, gender identity, or HIV status.

Please stay tuned for more information or contact us at: events@maggio-kattar.com or by phone at 202-483-0053.  Maggio + Kattar,  11 Dupont Circle, NW, Suite 775, Washington, DC 20036.

2011 Third Annual Founder's Day Benefit

In March 2011, Maggio + Kattar held its third annual Founders' Day benefit for The Tahirih Justice Center ("Tahirih").  Tahirih  services to immigrant women and girls in the United States who have been subjected to gender-based violence.  Tahirih offers these at-risk women and girls the services of in-house and pro bono attorneys and assists them in achieving justice and equality through holistic direct legal services and national public policy advocacy and public education.  Tahirih seeks to ensure the protection and safety of its clients as well as their long-term well-being, by raising their voices in the public policy arena, informing the public of the unique challenges immigrant survivors of violence face, and ultimately, creating lasting legal and social change.   At the Founders Day event, we also enjoyed a performance by reknown organic electronica artist,  Yoko K.

To hear more about Tahirih and to make a donation, please visit their website at:  http://www.tahirih.org/ 

2010 Second Annual Founder's Day Benefit

In March 2010, Maggio + Kattar celebrated its second annual Founders' Day to benefit the American Immigration Council ("Council"), formerly the American Immigration Law Foundation.   The mission of the Council is to strengthen America by honoring our immigrant history and shaping how Americans think and act towards immigration now and in the future. The Council exists to promote the prosperity and cultural richness of our diverse nation by educating citizens about the enduring contributions of America's immigrants; standing up for sensible and humane immigration policies that reflect American values; insisting that our immigration laws be enacted and implemented in a way that honors fundamental constitutional and human rights; and, working tirelessly to achieve justice and fairness for immigrants under the law.  The Council believes that the dignity of the individual knows no boundary and that our nation's moral and ethical values must be reflected in the way we welcome immigrants. Their motto is: Honoring our immigrant past; shaping our immigrant future.

To learn more about the Council or to make a donation, please visit:  http://www.americanimmigrationcouncil.org/

2009 First Annual Founder's Day Benefit

In March 2009, Maggio + Kattar celebrated its first annual Founders' Day benefitting Identity, a Latino youth outreach organization that serves the growing Latino community in Montgomery County, Maryland.   Identity was founded by Candace Kattar in 1998 and works to empower Latino youth at risk of joining gangs.  For more information about Identity and its important work or to make a donation,  please visit:  http://www.identity.ws/.

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About the Firm Founders

Michael Maggio died on February 10, 2008, at the age of 60 after a courageous 10-month battle with non-Hodgkin's lymphoma. Michael was our beloved colleague, mentor, teacher, and friend. Justice, the rule of law, and human rights were the core principles that guided Michael's legal practice and personal philosophy. Michael fought for fairness and equal protection under the law. He profoundly affected the legal landscape of immigration law and beyond, and did so with tremendous wit, skill, and bravado. Throughout his career, Michael received countless professional awards and was honored for his extraordinary legal representation, astute strategizing, unwavering commitment to the highest ethical standards, and his deep passion for justice and upholding the rule of law. The American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee, the American Immigration Lawyers Association, and the National Immigration Project of the National Lawyers' Guild honored Michael "for his courageous and visionary work in defending immigrant rights and, in so doing, strengthening the constitutional rights of all U.S. residents and citizens." The Tahirih Justice Center, which focuses on gender-based violence, and the National Coalition to Protect Political Freedom have also honored his work.

For nearly three decades, Candace Kattar has worked with the Latino community in the metropolitan Washington area as an advocate and service provider. Candace's tireless efforts provide opportunities for Latino youth to believe in themselves and to reach their highest potential through after-school programs, fitness and recreation activities, parent education and support, and case management and referral services. She serves on Montgomery County Police Chief Tom Manger's Latino Liaison Committee and the UpCounty Latino Network, where she co-chairs the Youth, Families and Education Work Group. Candace served on Montgomery County Executive Douglas Duncan's Gang Prevention Task Force and is a member of Leadership Montgomery's 2006 class.