AGO, Bar Association asked to probe lawyer

A lawyer is facing scrutiny by the Attorney General’s Office and the Northern Marianas Bar Association to find out whether he is permitted to practice his legal profession on the island.

The House of Representatives yesterday formally sought the investigation of Bruce Lee Jorgensen, an attorney who has sued the federal and Commonwealth governments in the past on behalf of asylum seekers.

A resolution offered by House Speaker Benigno R. Fitial and adopted during the session stated that Mr. Jorgensen “may be engaging in the unauthorized practice of law” before the CNMI courts.

The move apparently stemmed from a letter signed by a concerned citizen who had called the attention of the lower house.

Both acting Attorney General Herb Soll and former Justice Ramon G. Villagomez, president of the CNMI Bar Association, are being asked to conduct the probe.

According to the resolution, the local justice system partially rests on the reputation of those who are authorized to practice law in the CNMI.

“[T]he illegal practice of law by anyone, regardless whether the person is legally trained, undermines, compromises and breeds insecurity in such a system,” it added.

Mr. Jorgensen, although not directly responding to the allegations, welcomed the move, but denounced it as “mean-spirited” and “racist.” “Rather than attempting to disparage my name, why don’t they focus instead on the real issue here?” he asked in an interview.

“That issue is on their responsibility that each and every CNMI resident, including nonresident guests, who pay the legislator’s salary, is accorded both the rights guaranteed to them under the applicable laws and the right to their counsel of choice. Those rights include the right to seek asylum, and the right to be protected from torture,” added Mr. Jorgensen.

A call made to Mr. Villagomez to seek his comment on the House move has yet to be returned as of presstime.

Last month, Mr. Jorgensen facilitated the asylum application of 17 foreigners residing in the CNMI when he submitted their papers to four offices of U.S. Immigration and Naturalization Service in the Asia-Pacific region.

Those seeking asylum included five Sri Lankan nationals and 12 from the People’s Republic of China. At the same time, he filed a lawsuit with the U.S. District Court on Saipan naming the CNMI and the federal governments as defendants in connection with the asylum application.

The suit will seek court injunction to compel INS officials to accept and process the forms as well as to restrain local and federal authorities from arresting, imprisoning and/or deporting the asylum seekers, while demanding monetary damages, attorney’s fees and costs.

Mr. Jorgensen’s move followed the release from a CNMI detention of his clients who are two Chinese nationals seeking asylum. Their applications are still pending as the federal court has yet to rule on their case.

Both federal and local officials have said the CNMI can not grant asylum to foreign nationals as its immigration laws do not allow such a program.