Ms. Pantea Jafari is Of Counsel to Ackah Business Immigration Law. Ms. Jafari is a distinguished Canadian immigration lawyer, advocate, policy analyst, mentor, and educator. She is renowned for her unwavering commitment to justice and her impact on immigration law in Canada through cutting edge litigation. As the founder and lead counsel of Jafari Law, established in 2012, she has successfully guided hundreds of individuals and families through the complexities of the Canadian immigration system. Ms. Jafari practices the solicitor (application) and barrister (litigation) aspects of Canadian immigration law exclusively. Her litigation practice includes the rare and distinct type of litigation known as case managed litigations, or as “group litigation” as they are commonly referred to. Through the legal and evidentiary complexities of group litigations, she helps applicants challenge systemic issues in the administration of Canadian immigration law.
A pivotal moment in Ms. Jafari's career was her representation of 110 Self-Employed applicants in the landmark case of Tafreshi v. MCI, 2022 FC 1089. Therein, she proved that Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) had made a “deliberate and calculated decision” to abruptly change the process and evidentiary standard for assessing their applications, thereby denying these individuals a fair opportunity to realize their Canadian dreams. The Court ordered unprecedented remedies, including a total cost award of nearly $50,000.
Beyond her legal practice, Ms. Jafari is an engaged advocate in the reform and administration of immigration and border security laws. She serves as the Submissions Coordinator of the Canadian Bar Association’s National Immigration Section, is a Member At Large of the Ontario Bar Association’s Immigration Executive and is a lecturer with multiple legal organizations. Her expertise is frequently sought after, leading her to speak at legal conferences, community education seminars, and to provide testimony to House and Senate Committees on those organizations’ behalf.