Removal Defense Limited-Scope Legal Services

The County of San Mateo Office of Community Affairs is seeking qualified firms and individuals to enter into a Master Agreement with the County to provide Limited-Scope Removal Defense Legal Services for San Mateo County residents facing deportation and removal proceedings before the Executive Office for Immigration Review (EOIR).  In the County, we value every resident, whatever their birthplace, language spoken, or immigration status. Providing fair representation in immigration court proceedings is an effective way to ensure that an individual's right to due process is protected and provides education to the community. Office of Community Affairs (OCA) is looking to build and expand the ecosystem to provide immigration legal services. The County will be the administrator of the contract only; the coordination of legal services is expected to be provider-led. The OCA is currently inviting all proposers to review the three distinct RFPs for immigration-related legal services: (1) Affirmative Immigration Legal Services; (2) Rapid Response Services; and (3) Limited-Scope Removal Defense Legal Services.  Interested parties are welcome to submit proposals for any or all of these three RFPs.

The proposer is expected to provide their services on a per matter[1] basis, to allow a greater number of residents to receive assistance. All proposers must have an active membership, in good standing, with the State Bar of California and/or must be able to provide verification of such membership.

Background

The County is committed to protecting and enhancing the health, safety, welfare and natural resources of the community. Through resources and education, the County seeks to expand access to relief for individuals and families to address deportation risk and to support a coordinated legal services ecosystem.

Project Details

• Reference ID: 2026-RFP-00240
• Department: County Executive's Office - Office of Community Affairs
• Department Head: Michael Callagy (County Executive)

Important Dates

• Questions Due: 2026-04-03T22:00:00.000Z
• Answers Posted By: 2026-04-10T22:00:05.849Z

Addenda

• Addendum #1 (released 2026-03-30T22:31:40.195Z) —

  Please use the See What Changed link to view all the changes made by this addendum.

Evaluation Criteria

• Limited-Scope Model Quality (33 pts)
• Staffing and Qualifications (28 pts)
• Coordination Plan (22 pts)
• Budget and Cost Effectiveness (17 pts)

Submission Requirements

• Minimum Qualifications
• Has at least five (5) years of experience handling Removal Defense cases, with some portion of this work within the last seven (7) years. (required)
• Proposer must have an active membership, in good standing, with the State Bar of California and/or must be able to provide verification of such membership. (required)
• Proposer is able to meet ethical withdraw requirements? (required)
• Please confirm your firm is registered with System for Award Management (SAM) (required) —

  SAM.gov

• What is the registered Business Name and Unique Entity ID (UEI) No.? (required) —
  • UEI number can be obtained by registering your business through SAM.GOV
  • Should you be in the process of obtaining your UEI number, please enter the digits ‘123’ temporarily for your response below in order to proceed with proposal. This temporary number should be replaced with the correct registration number for submission of the proposal.
• Procurement Preference for Local Businesses and Local Non-Profits
• Is the Proposer a "Local Business"? —

  As Defined by Chapter 2.89.020 of the San Mateo County Ordinance Code, a “Local Business” means any for-profit business which has its principal place of business, or is headquartered, in San Mateo County. If this designation applies to the proposer, a self-attestation form must be completed and provided with this response. 

  Please download the below documents, complete, and upload. If this designation is not applicable, please leave blank. 

• Is the Proposer a Non-Profit? (required) —

  A Non-Profit is defined as a tax-exempt public charity organization (within the meaning of section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code) that is formed for purposes other than making a profit, is exempt from paying federal income taxes on the income generated for their exempt purposes. 

• Is the Proposer a "Local Non-Profit" —

  As Defined by Chapter 2.89.020 of the San Mateo County Ordinance Code, a “Local Non-Profit" means a tax-exempt public charity organization (within the meaning of section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code) that is formed for purposes other than making a profit, is exempt from paying federal income taxes on the income generated for their exempt purposes, and has its principal place of business, or is headquartered, in San Mateo County. If this designation applies to the proposer, a self-attestation form must be completed and provided with this response. 

  Please download the below documents, complete, and upload. If this designation is not applicable, please leave blank.

• Technical Proposal
• Introduction and Executive Summary (required) —

  Submit a letter of introduction and executive summary of the proposal.  The letter must contain:

  • Name, title and contact information (email, phone, and address) for representative of proposer that is responsible for communication related to this RFP.
  • Name, title, contact information, and signature of person authorized to obligate firm to perform the commitment contained in the proposal.

  Submission of the letter will constitute a representation by proposer that it is willing and able to perform the commitments contained in the proposal and has not violated the terms of this RFP.

• Statement of Minimum Qualifications (required) —

  Describe how the proposer meets the minimum qualifications as set forth in Minimum Qualifications of this RFP.

  Submission of the Minimum Qualifications checklist is not a substitute for providing a detailed written response.

• Project Approach (required) —

  This section should correlate to the Scope of Work. Proposer should give a short summary describing how it will perform the relevant work

• Scope of Work tasks/milestones (required) —

  Describe your proposed approach to tasks/milestones

• Proposed schedule (required) —

  Attach proposed schedule reference ability to complete the project within the County's required time frame

• Performance Measures (required) —

  Describe a plan for achieving performance measures 

• Firm Qualifications (required) —

  Attach information regarding background and qualifications, including the following:

  • A brief description of the proposer.
  • If subcontractors are anticipated, identify them (if known) and provide information on how they will be used.
• Team Qualifications (required) —

  Provide a chart identifying:

  5. 2. • Project team and reporting structure
        • Lead project manager
        • Role each person will play in the project

  Provide a brief description of the experience and qualifications of the project team members, including short resumes if desired.

  Written assurance that the key individuals listed and identified will be performing the work and will not be substituted or reassigned without the County’s prior approval

• References (required) —

  Provide 3 references for each of the following, including the name, address, and telephone number of recent clients (preferably other public agencies):

• Fee Proposal (required) —

  The Fee Proposal should be submitted as a separate PDF file from the Technical Proposals detailed in Required Documents.

  The County reserves the right to accept other than the lowest priced offer and to reject any proposals that are not responsive to this request.

• Innovation Methodology —

  Provide Navigation Team and Shared Intake / Screening System innovations or improvements that you expect to provide (with respect to, for example, efficiency, technology, sustainability) 

• Agreement term (years) (required) —

  Update below if needed.

• Is there an extension to this agreement? (required) —

  Is there an extension to this agreement?

• Extension (required) —

  Modify the extension information below, if needed

• Will there be a Pre-Proposal Meeting and/or a Site Visit? (required)
• Include the information that will be covered in the site visit. (required)
• Require vendors to provide References? (required)
• References (required) —

  How many references are required by the vendor? (Number)

• Use Electronic Line Item Pricing? (required)
• Allow vendors to submit Confidential Information? (required) —

  In rare circumstances where there is an expectation that proposers will need to submit trade secrets or other confidential information in order to respond to an RFP. 

• Sample Agreement (required)

Questions & Answers