BRENNAN GIAN-GRASSO
Brennan is a founding partner of the firm Gian-Grasso & Tomczak Immigration Law Firm. He is a member in good standing of the Pennsylvania Bar. Brennan focuses his practice exclusively on immigration law with special competence in the immigration consequences of criminal convictions.
Brennan’s primary practice focuses on removal defense in both the detained and non-detained contexts, including deportation defense, litigation and appellate work at the Board of Immigration Appeals. He has successfully litigated cases before the Immigration Court (EOIR) in Philadelphia, New Jersey, New York, Baltimore and Orlando. He also has won cases at the Board of Immigration Appeals and the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit. He handles various types of immigration litigation, including cancellation of removal for lawful permanent residents and non-permanent residents, adjustment of status, waivers of inadmissibility for both fraud and criminal activity, asylum, withholding of removal and requests for prosecutorial discretion. In the detained setting, he is experienced in obtaining bond and parole for clients. He also represents individuals in non-typical immigration litigation, using strategies such as Motions to Suppress in the Immigration Court context to challenge the aggressive enforcement policies of Immigration and Customs Enforcement that affect immigrant families throughout our community.
In addition to the litigation based removal practice, Brennan represents individuals and families applying for affirmative benefits with U.S. Citizenship & Immigration Services (USCIS). Some applications include family-based I-130 Petitions, Adjustment of Status, Special Immigrant Juvenile Petitions (SIJ), VAWA Petitions for Victims of Domestic Violence, U Visa Petitions for crime victims, Naturalization and Certificates of Citizenship, Consular Processing, Fiancé Visas, Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA), and Temporary Protected Status (TPS).
Brennan’s experience with the criminal justice system in Philadelphia and surrounding counties allows him to advise criminal law attorneys in obtaining pleas for clients in criminal cases that avoid or minimize the immigration consequences of the convictions. He has worked with defense counsel to prepare guilty plea colloquies, post conviction relief applications (PCRAs), and sentence modifications that avoid immigration consequences. He regularly provides opinion letters to criminal defense attorneys to be used for plea negotiations and/or sentencing in criminal court.
Brennan is a legal adviser to the Mexican Consulate in Philadelphia, providing consultations to detained and non-detained Mexican Nationals, as well as direct representation in removal proceedings and affirmative applications. He has been a featured speaker at immigration CLEs on matters relating to crimmigration and waivers of inadmissibility.
Brennan obtained his Juris Doctorate at Temple University, Beasley School of Law, in May 2006. He also holds a M.Sc. in Economic History from the London School of Economics. He received his B.A. in Asian and Middle Eastern Studies from the University of Pennsylvania in May 2000.
Brennan is a member of the American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA). He is active in AILA’s local Philadelphia Chapter, where he serves as Secretary of the chapter’s Executive Committee, and was a Chair of AILA from 2018-2019. Brennan is fluent in Spanish and conversant in French. He lives in Philadelphia with his wife, Courtney and his children, Iris, Isaiah, and Ivan.