Ellen Atkinson

Ellen Atkinson graduated magna cum laude from the University of San Diego School of Law.  While at USD, she served on the editorial board of the San Diego Law Review, collaborated on a successful Ninth Circuit immigration appeal, placed second nationally out of twenty-two teams in the UC Davis King Civil Rights Mock Trial Competition, and received the William C. Kuebler Award for demonstrated courage and tenacity in her personal and professional life.  Ms. Atkinson is also a graduate of Colorado College, where she holds a Bachelor of Arts with distinction in History and Political Science with a concentration on the Middle East and North Africa and a minor in Arabic and Islamic Studies.  While at CC, she studied abroad four times and volunteered with Lutheran Family Services Refugee Resettlement Program, the public library system’s ESL and Naturalization classes, and yoga instruction for veterans in the El Paso County Jail.

At Joseph & Hall, Ms. Atkinson specializes in family, humanitarian, and removal defense cases.  Her practice includes all affirmative and defensive applications and petitions before USCIS, proceedings before EOIR, and federal litigation.  Her experience in removal defense, including volunteering at the Dilley Family Detention Center preparing clients for their credible fear interviews, has prepared her to provide compassionate and trauma-informed results-oriented work.

Ms. Atkinson was born and raised in Colorado and is admitted to practice law in California and Texas.  Prior to joining Joseph & Hall, Ms. Atkinson clerked for a federal judge in the Western District of Texas; worked as an associate attorney for an international law firm; and served as a removal defense case manager at a boutique immigration law firm in Corpus Christi, Texas during the first Trump administration. She is actively involved with the American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA).

When not in the office, Ms. Atkinson enjoys exploring new places and getting outside cycling, hiking, backpacking, and camping.  She has been to 41 countries and cares about volunteering with and advocating on behalf of inmates and refugees.