SAN DIEGO (CNS) - A bill authored by state Assemblywoman Lorena Gonzalez, D-San Diego, that seeks to permit law licenses for people in the country illegally cleared the Legislature Thursday and was awaiting Gov. Jerry Brown's signature Friday.
Assembly Bill 1024 passed with a bipartisan 60-3 vote during a session that lasted into well into Thursday night, as lawmakers hurried to finish their work for the year.
"AB 1024 completes the promise we've made to dreamers who have worked hard, studied hard, passed the Bar exam and now just want the right to make a living for themselves as an attorney,'' Gonzalez said.
The bill, which was co-authored by the California Latino Legislative Caucus, stemmed from a pending case in the state's Supreme Court in which a man who was brought into the United States illegally as a child now wants to practice law.
Sergio Garcia was granted a law license in 2011 after he passed the State Bar exam and fulfilled all other requirements to be a licensed attorney in California, but that license was revoked two weeks later when his undocumented status was discovered.
