Alex Vernon

Alex Vernon works as Legal Director of the Southwest Immigrant and Refugee Center. Previously, Alex Vernon has directed immigration clinics at Detroit Mercy School of Law, And the Ave Maria School of Law, working with law students assisting migrants fleeing for their lives, struggling for family unity, and striving to regularize their status.  Given his geographic location, Alex has extensive experience of how the Safe Third Country agreement between Canada and the United States impacts the lives of refugees in both countries.

Alex is a founding member of the Canada/US Cross Border Network and is on the steering committee of the Canada US Border Rights Clinic, a new legal clinic serving the migrants navigating the Canada/US border. Alex is a Board Member of Southwest Florida’s Organización Internacional de Latinos en el Exterior, the Deported Asylum Seekers Assistance Project, And the Southwest Detroit Immigrant and Refugee Center, now Ex Officio. Alex also participates in the State Bar of Michigan Immigration Chapter, Canadian Council of Refugees, the Canada Sanctuary Network, the International Sanctuary Declaration Network, and the American Immigration Lawyers Association, where he was recognized as a Michigan chapter pro bono champion in 2025.