Our Legal Team
Lilah Thompson
Supervising Attorney​
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​Lilah Thompson is the Supervising Attorney of the Pennsylvania Immigrant Family Unity Project (PAIFUP), Pennsylvania’s first publicly-funded defense counsel project for noncitizens in immigration detention. She joined NSC in February 2020.
Lilah represents clients pro bono in removal and bond proceedings before the Executive Office for Immigration Review and the Board of Immigration Appeals. Lilah also works closely with community partners and attorneys throughout the United States towards the mission of providing universal representation to all noncitizens who are unable to afford counsel, and in support of a just immigration system that reflects the needs and lived experiences of those experiencing deportation and detention.
Prior to joining NSC, Lilah worked for the U.S. Department of Justice as an Attorney Advisor at the New York and Philadelphia Immigration Courts. Lilah is a graduate of Temple University Beasley School of Law and of Franklin & Marshall College. She is a member of the Pennsylvania bar and is Chair of the AILA Philadelphia Chapter EOIR Liaison committee. She is fluent in Spanish.
Maria Thomson
​Staff Attorney​
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Maria Thomson joined Nationalities Service Center in January 2024 as a staff attorney working on the Pennsylvania Immigrant Family Unity Project. At NSC, she provides pro bono representation to individuals in removal and bond proceedings before the Executive Office for Immigration Review and the Board of Immigration Appeals. Maria’s role is split with the Defender Association of Philadelphia, where she also serves as an immigration specialist to advise criminal attorneys and clients about the immigration consequences of criminal charges and assist in negotiating immigration-safe outcomes.
Prior to joining NSC, Maria also provided universal representation to immigrants in removal proceedings as an Oregon Worker Relief Fellow at Innovation Law Lab.
Maria graduated from the Temple University Beasley School of Law and Temple University School of Social Work with a joint JD/MSW degree in 2022, and she completed her B.A. at Swarthmore College in 2014. Maria got her start in immigration advocacy in 2012 as a volunteer at Annunciation House, a migrant shelter in El Paso, TX, and she continues to serve the organization as a member of the Board of Directors. She is fluent in Spanish.
Mikaela Wolf-Sorokin
Skadden Fellow​
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Mikaela Wolf-Sorokin joined NSC in September 2024 as a Skadden Fellow with the Pennsylvania Immigrant Family Unity Project (PAIFUP). Through her fellowship project, she provides free legal representation to individuals detained in ICE custody in Pennsylvania who have ties to Delaware and Montgomery counties. She also works with community partners to expand resources for pro se post-conviction relief petitions for immigration-related due process violations.
Before law school, Mikaela worked at the Political Asylum and Immigration Representation (PAIR) Project in Boston, Massachusetts. Mikaela graduated from the University of Pennsylvania Carey Law School in 2024. Along with NSC Senior Staff Attorney Whitney Viets and Clinic Professor Elizabeth Bradley, Mikaela is the co-author of the law review article, Padilla’s Broken Promise: Pennsylvania Case Study. This article analyzes crimmigration advising across 20 counties in Pennsylvania and provides recommendations to improve criminal defense representation of noncitizens in Pennsylvania. Mikaela speaks Spanish.
Andrea Solis Canto
Independence Foundation Fellow​
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Andrea Solis Canto joined NSC in September 2025 as an Independence Foundation Fellow with the Pennsylvania Immigrant Family Unity Project (PAIFUP). Through her fellowship project, she provides free legal representation to detained and non-detained noncitizens in the greater Philadelphia area who are at imminent risk of deportation based on a prior removal order.
Before law school, Andrea worked as a Paralegal Advocate at the Legal Aid Society of Southwest Ohio in Cincinnati, Ohio. Andrea graduated from Villanova University Charles Widger School of Law in 2025. During law school, she worked in the Villanova Law Clinic for Asylum, Refugee & Emigrant Services (CARES) and she interned with Centro de Los Derechos del Migrante, the ACLU of Pennsylvania, American Immigration Council, and the Philadelphia Immigration Court. Andrea is a native Spanish speaker.
Joseby Anne-Joelle Jeannot
Legal Assistant​
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Joseby Jeannot joined NSC in September 2024 as a Legal Assistant in the Pennsylvania Immigrant Family Unity Project (PAIFUP). In this role, Joseby supports attorneys by managing case files, preparing legal documents, and assisting clients with their immigration cases.
Prior to joining PAIFUP, Joseby gained experience working at the Burlington County Prosecutor's office, where she contributed to various legal projects. Set to graduate in spring 2025 with a bachelor's degree in law and justice from Rowan University, Joseby is passionate about immigration law and criminal justice reform.
Fluent in French, English, and Haitian Creole, and proficient in Spanish, she brings valuable language skills to assist PAIFUP's diverse client base. Outside of work, Joseby volunteers with Ameri-STEAM and in her local community, dedicating time to community service and social justice initiatives.
Matthew P. Egler DiFerdinando
Staff Attorney​
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Matthew P. Egler DiFerdinando, Esq. is a Staff Attorney at HIAS Pennsylvania. Matt joined HIAS PA as an Independence Foundation Public Interest Law Fellow in 2020. In his current position, he provides direct representation to individuals detained by Immigration and Customs Enforcement throughout removal proceedings and before the Board of Immigration Appeals. Matt is a graduate of Boston College Law School and Loyola University Maryland. Matt is fluent in Spanish.
​Christopher Setz-Kelly
Program Manager Attorney​
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Chris Setz-Kelly joined HIAS Pennsylvania as the Asylum and Removal Defense Program Manager Attorney in 2022 after years of representing immigrant clients in the Philadelphia region. Chris regularly represents individuals in Immigration Court and has extensive experience in asylum law, motions to reopen, and minimizing the immigration
consequences of criminal convictions. Previously, he was an associate at the law firm Gian-Grasso, Tomczak & Hufe, P.C., where his practice focused on representing non-citizens in removal proceedings as well as in appeals before the Board of Immigration Appeals and federal courts. Before that, Chris was a staff attorney at Nationalities Service Center.
Benjamin Hooper
Supervising Attorney
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Ben Hooper is a supervising attorney with PIRC’s Removal Defense Programs. Since joining PIRC in January 2018, Ben has represented immigrants in Pennsylvania detained at York and Moshannon Valley, and other prisons in the Eastern United States. Ben’s work has focused on applicants for asylum and protection under the United Nations Convention against Torture, defending individuals with refugee status from removal, and advocating for immigrants with limited English-language proficiency.
Ben’s notable cases include B.C. v. AG United States, 12 F.4th 306 (3d Cir. 2021) and Ishmael v. AG United States, 77 F.4th 175 (3d Cir. 2023). Ben has been a legal aid attorney for 25 years; he previously worked for the Pennsylvania Coalition Against Domestic Violence, MidPenn Legal Services, Columbia Legal Services and Legal Assistance of Western New York. Ben earned his J.D. degree from Northeastern University, and a B.A. in Political Science at Binghamton University. Ben lives in Lancaster, Pennsylvania with his wife, Victoria, and their dog and two cats.
Adriana Vukmanic
Staff Attorney​
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Adriana Vukmanic joined the Removal Defense Program at the Pennsylvania Immigration Resource Center (PIRC) in November 2024. In her role, she provides legal representation to individuals in removal proceedings through a variety of programs. She also conducts legal orientation presentations and individual consultations through the Legal Orientation Program (LOP).
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Before joining PIRC, Adriana served as a federal judicial law clerk for the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania. There, she assisted in drafting judicial opinions and conducting legal research in cases involving, habeas corpus, constitutional claims, and immigration law. She also worked as an Immigration Visa Specialist, preparing employment-based petitions and advising corporate clients on USCIS procedures. In addition, Adriana supports underserved families as a Family Advocate with LivingWell Institute, helping to support clients as they navigate services across various systems.
Adriana is fluent in Croatian, Serbian, and Bosnian, and has limited working proficiency in Russian and elementary proficiency in Spanish. She earned her Juris Doctor, cum laude, from Widener University Commonwealth Law School, where she served as Internal Supervising Editor of the Widener Law Review and received a Certificate in Administrative and Constitutional Law. She holds a B.A. in International Relations and Modern Languages and Literature as well as minors in Russian and Religious Studies from Lehigh University. She is admitted to the Pennsylvania Bar.
Sofia Kimball
Legal Fellow​
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Sofia Kimball joined the Pennsylvania Immigration Resource Center (PIRC) as a Legal Fellow in September 2025. Over the course of her fellowship, Sofia will provide pro bono representation to detained and non-detained clients in removal proceedings before the immigration court.
Sofia graduated from Stanford Law School in June 2025. Prior to law school, Sofia worked to support immigrants’ rights in both the legal and social services sectors in Colorado, Vermont, Texas, California, and Tanzania. Sofia speaks Spanish.
Yomayra Burgos
Coordinator​
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Yomayra is PAIFUP Coordinator for Removal Defense Programs at the Pennsylvania Immigration Resource Center (PIRC). Yomayra Burgos joined PIRC in March 2022. Yomayra holds a Bachelor of Arts in Geography, Global Studies with minors in Latin@ Studies and Government and Political Affairs from Millersville University. She previously served as an intern for Community Outreach on the Jess King for Congress campaign where she worked primarily with Spanish-speaking constituents. For years, she volunteered with the Latin American Alliance by mentoring young women pursuing their higher educational goals through the Miss Hispanidad Scholarship Program. She is committed to serving the immigrant and refugee community. Yomayra is fluent in Spanish.
Working Group
Andrew Baranoski: Exective Director, Pennsylvania Immigration Resource Center
Jasmine Rivera: Executive Director, Pennsylvania Immigration Coalition
Steven Larín: Deputy Director, Nationalities Service Center
Cathryn Miller-Wilson: Executive Director, HIAS Pennsylvania
Laura Perkins: Emergency Response Organizer, Casa San Jose
Emiliano Rodriguez: Regional Director, Unite Here!
Vanessa Stine: Immigrants' Right Attorney, ACLU of Pennsylvania
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