Agnieszka is Associate Professor in Sociology at UCL (SSEES). Prior to joining UCL she was a British Academy Post-Doctoral Research Fellow at the Centre for Socio-Legal Studies at Oxford, and a Lecturer in Russian and East European Studies (also at Oxford). Her research interests lie broadly at the intersection of legal, human rights and migration studies. She is currently a PI on ERC/UKRI funded projects: 'Who are the humans behind Human Rights?' The project comparatively explores human rights mobilisation in Poland, Russia, Ukraine, Romania and Hungary. She conducted two pilots leading to this research: focusing on legal mobilisation around reproductive rights (funded by Leverhulme/British Academy) and on judicial activism under the rule-of-law crisis in Poland (funded by British Academy).
Agnieszka's past research project (published as a monograph 'Immigration and Refugee Law in Russia. Socio-Legal Perspectives' with Cambridge University Press, 2019): mapped migrants' and refugees' experiences of the legal environment in Russia thereby advancing new theoretical perspectives on the interplay between migration governance and migrants as agents responding to the new socio-legal environment, questions of legality and illegality, legal consciousness, legal pluralism.
inter-wave dynamics and the consequences for migration processes Ukrainians in the United Kingdom... more inter-wave dynamics and the consequences for migration processes Ukrainians in the United Kingdom and the
This chapter moves up a level in the Russian justice system hierarchy and focuses on the district... more This chapter moves up a level in the Russian justice system hierarchy and focuses on the district and regional courts of general jurisdiction which pronounce on immigration law cases. It is primarily based on the observations of what are the most typical immigration law cases – offences against Articles 18.8 and 18.10 of the Code of Administrative Offences (CAO). The said offences concern not having a valid residence registration (18.8 CAO Part 3) or working without a work permit (18.10 CAO Part 2). Based on long-term ethnographic observations in courts and on interviews with the different parties to the process, this chapter discerns the most common trends in the adjudication of these immigration cases. This examination serves to open up a broader question: What do immigrant experiences tell us about the Russian justice system? Through the prism of the immigration law cases, this chapter particularly studies the mechanisms of decisionmaking in Russian courts and investigates the po...
When, in April 2014, Russian Federal Migration Service (FMS) raided a sweatshop in a town K, thre... more When, in April 2014, Russian Federal Migration Service (FMS) raided a sweatshop in a town K, three Syrian men were arrested. They were found working without work permits and on expired tourist visas. The FMS promptly took them to the district court where they were charged with administrative offences against Russian immigration law and sentenced to expulsion (deportation). The men applied for asylum in Russia, but the domestic courts did not give much weight to this development and supported their deportation stressing that the men arrived in Russia as 'migrant workers' and not 'refugees'. Why were the Syrian men's claims to international protection rejected in Russia on account of their previous undocumented work? This article argues that the answer to this question lies in the complex interplay of the historical factors pertaining to the separation of the category of 'work' from that of 'asylum', as well as judicial interpretation of these categ...
This article explores the responses of Polish post-2004 EU Enlargement economic migrants towards ... more This article explores the responses of Polish post-2004 EU Enlargement economic migrants towards British rules and regulations, which determine the character of their work and residence in the United Kingdom. The focus of the empirical part of the research is on attitudes and values, namely shared cultural meanings, and how they are behaviorally expressed with respect to law and legal institutions. The paper focuses on the intricacies of immigrants' choice of 'semi-legal' over legal status, subsequent legalization strategies, and the interpretations of legality these practices result in. What role in this process is played by the legal culture, the experience of law which migrants brought with them from Poland? The article concludes that legality could be discussed at two levels — at the behavioural level and at the level of a value. Changing status between the two poles of legality and illegality brings with it greater appreciation of legality, as a value.
Among the diverse approaches to comparison in socio-legal studies, those that employ qualitative ... more Among the diverse approaches to comparison in socio-legal studies, those that employ qualitative research, richness of detail and attention to context are the focus of this special issue. The Introduction draws on comparative law and social science literature to argue that comparison amongst studies of laws in contexts can follow different trajectories: the comparison may start from an assumption of similarity – in form, purposes or context – in order to identify significant differences; or it may identify significant similarity across social and cultural divides. What unites many of the projects of comparison undertaken by qualitative empirical researchers is that the points of relevant comparison are identified within the complexity of the empirical studies at hand; and they are allowed to emerge, or change, as the researcher comes to understand the facts and issues more deeply.
Since 2013, a three-year entry bar (zapret na v'ezd) has been issued in Russia to migrants wi... more Since 2013, a three-year entry bar (zapret na v'ezd) has been issued in Russia to migrants with a record of two or more administrative offenses. This article examines the sociolegal characteristics of zapret na v'ezd by situating it in a global, comparative perspective, vis-à -vis the legal developments in the areas of deportation and removal in the United States and the United Kingdom. This article argues that the Russian entry bar law experienced a shift, established by other migration-receiving jurisdictions, from controlling the migration process to controlling the social conduct of migrants, toward an increased reliance on deportability as a form of post-entry control of the migrant population. At a broader level, I aim to shed more light on the migration governance processes in Russia—the third largest destination of migrants worldwide—by moving away from the intellectually dead-end explanations that consider Russia as a deviant exception.
How do return migrants’ experiences of legality abroad influence their attitudes and practices to... more How do return migrants’ experiences of legality abroad influence their attitudes and practices toward the law in their country of origin? Theoretically, I advance an argument that return migrants’ legal consciousness could be considered a form of social remittance. However, in response to valid criticisms of the concept, I innovate upon it in three ways. First, I give the social remittances a narrower focus by empirically examining the values, attitudes and practices of legality, both positive and negative. Secondly, to ensure that the social remittances could indeed be traced to migration-related transfers, I base my analysis on in-depth interviews with return migrants and family members of Ukrainian migrants regarding their personal experiences of legality abroad and ‘at home’. I thereby reveal the nuances and subtle differences in the collective ‘Ukrainian’ legal consciousness beyond the ‘national mainstream’: where return migrants’ fatalism about law’s potential for upholding justice coexists with a sense of agency about capacity to achieve change outside the formal state law. Thirdly, I posit that legal consciousness not only reflects how certain socio-legal practices flow across borders, but also the ways in which the migrants themselves (and their families) innovate upon and interpret such ‘remittances’ in different ways. The results elaborate upon Levitt’s and Lamba-Nieves’ (2010) observations that social remittances work in both directions and are thus shaped not only by people’s experiences prior to migration and in their respective host countries, but are also adapted to the conditions they encounter upon their return.
The notion of a migration system is often invoked but it is rarely clearly defined or conceptuali... more The notion of a migration system is often invoked but it is rarely clearly defined or conceptualized. De Haas has recently provided a powerful critique of the current literature highlighting some important flaws that recur through it. In particular, migration systems tend to be identified as fully formed entities, and there is no theorization as to how they come into being and how they break down. The internal dynamics which drive such changes are not examined. Such critiques of migration systems relate to wider critiques of the concept of systems in the broader social science literature, where they are often presented as black boxes in which human agency is largely excluded. The challenge is how to theorize system dynamics in which the actions of people at one time contribute to the emergence of systemic linkages at a later time. This paper focuses on the genesis of migration systems and the notion of pioneer migration. It draws attention both to the role of particular individuals, the pioneers, and also the more general activity of pioneering which is undertaken by many migrants. By disentangling different aspects of agency, it is possible to develop hypotheses about how the emergence of migrations systems is related to the nature of the agency exercised by different pioneers or pioneering activities in different contexts.
Through an ethnographic study of the immigration law system in Russia, and interviews with legal ... more Through an ethnographic study of the immigration law system in Russia, and interviews with legal professionals and Central Asian migrants themselves, this paper asks: What are the lived experiences of the highly complex, though ambiguous immigration law regime of Russia? According to what ‘rules of the game’ does it operate? Are they specific to Russia only? This paper develops the concept of ‘the spiral effect of the law’ to capture the image of law, as formed through people's experiences of the legal system. Drawing on the comparative tool of analogy, this paper suggests that ‘the spiral effect of the law’ is perhaps not that different from the observable effects of immigration law in other major migration-receiving jurisdictions, namely the US, framed as ‘legal violence’ by Cecilia MenjÃvar and Leisy Abrego (2012).
This paper asks how to study migrants' relationship with the legal system upon arrival in the... more This paper asks how to study migrants' relationship with the legal system upon arrival in the host country? Concentrating on the issues of plurality, it articulates different ways of explaining migrants' legal adaptations to the new legal environment. To clarify the fragmented debates I organise the approaches around the relative importance of the main analytical perspectives: legal assimilation, legal pluralism and legal consciousness/culture. I critically examine the assimilationist approach and demonstrate how the alternative perspectives are both an advance and a critique of it. The paper concludes that for studying migrants' legal adaptations the relevant question between legal pluralism and legal consciousness/culture approaches should not be one of ‘either/or’ but ‘how much’ or ‘to what extent’, depending on the populations under scrutiny. They both contribute to new ways in which ‘law’ is conceptualised that have implications for the study of legal orders as a whole.
inter-wave dynamics and the consequences for migration processes Ukrainians in the United Kingdom... more inter-wave dynamics and the consequences for migration processes Ukrainians in the United Kingdom and the
This chapter moves up a level in the Russian justice system hierarchy and focuses on the district... more This chapter moves up a level in the Russian justice system hierarchy and focuses on the district and regional courts of general jurisdiction which pronounce on immigration law cases. It is primarily based on the observations of what are the most typical immigration law cases – offences against Articles 18.8 and 18.10 of the Code of Administrative Offences (CAO). The said offences concern not having a valid residence registration (18.8 CAO Part 3) or working without a work permit (18.10 CAO Part 2). Based on long-term ethnographic observations in courts and on interviews with the different parties to the process, this chapter discerns the most common trends in the adjudication of these immigration cases. This examination serves to open up a broader question: What do immigrant experiences tell us about the Russian justice system? Through the prism of the immigration law cases, this chapter particularly studies the mechanisms of decisionmaking in Russian courts and investigates the po...
When, in April 2014, Russian Federal Migration Service (FMS) raided a sweatshop in a town K, thre... more When, in April 2014, Russian Federal Migration Service (FMS) raided a sweatshop in a town K, three Syrian men were arrested. They were found working without work permits and on expired tourist visas. The FMS promptly took them to the district court where they were charged with administrative offences against Russian immigration law and sentenced to expulsion (deportation). The men applied for asylum in Russia, but the domestic courts did not give much weight to this development and supported their deportation stressing that the men arrived in Russia as 'migrant workers' and not 'refugees'. Why were the Syrian men's claims to international protection rejected in Russia on account of their previous undocumented work? This article argues that the answer to this question lies in the complex interplay of the historical factors pertaining to the separation of the category of 'work' from that of 'asylum', as well as judicial interpretation of these categ...
This article explores the responses of Polish post-2004 EU Enlargement economic migrants towards ... more This article explores the responses of Polish post-2004 EU Enlargement economic migrants towards British rules and regulations, which determine the character of their work and residence in the United Kingdom. The focus of the empirical part of the research is on attitudes and values, namely shared cultural meanings, and how they are behaviorally expressed with respect to law and legal institutions. The paper focuses on the intricacies of immigrants' choice of 'semi-legal' over legal status, subsequent legalization strategies, and the interpretations of legality these practices result in. What role in this process is played by the legal culture, the experience of law which migrants brought with them from Poland? The article concludes that legality could be discussed at two levels — at the behavioural level and at the level of a value. Changing status between the two poles of legality and illegality brings with it greater appreciation of legality, as a value.
Among the diverse approaches to comparison in socio-legal studies, those that employ qualitative ... more Among the diverse approaches to comparison in socio-legal studies, those that employ qualitative research, richness of detail and attention to context are the focus of this special issue. The Introduction draws on comparative law and social science literature to argue that comparison amongst studies of laws in contexts can follow different trajectories: the comparison may start from an assumption of similarity – in form, purposes or context – in order to identify significant differences; or it may identify significant similarity across social and cultural divides. What unites many of the projects of comparison undertaken by qualitative empirical researchers is that the points of relevant comparison are identified within the complexity of the empirical studies at hand; and they are allowed to emerge, or change, as the researcher comes to understand the facts and issues more deeply.
Since 2013, a three-year entry bar (zapret na v'ezd) has been issued in Russia to migrants wi... more Since 2013, a three-year entry bar (zapret na v'ezd) has been issued in Russia to migrants with a record of two or more administrative offenses. This article examines the sociolegal characteristics of zapret na v'ezd by situating it in a global, comparative perspective, vis-à -vis the legal developments in the areas of deportation and removal in the United States and the United Kingdom. This article argues that the Russian entry bar law experienced a shift, established by other migration-receiving jurisdictions, from controlling the migration process to controlling the social conduct of migrants, toward an increased reliance on deportability as a form of post-entry control of the migrant population. At a broader level, I aim to shed more light on the migration governance processes in Russia—the third largest destination of migrants worldwide—by moving away from the intellectually dead-end explanations that consider Russia as a deviant exception.
How do return migrants’ experiences of legality abroad influence their attitudes and practices to... more How do return migrants’ experiences of legality abroad influence their attitudes and practices toward the law in their country of origin? Theoretically, I advance an argument that return migrants’ legal consciousness could be considered a form of social remittance. However, in response to valid criticisms of the concept, I innovate upon it in three ways. First, I give the social remittances a narrower focus by empirically examining the values, attitudes and practices of legality, both positive and negative. Secondly, to ensure that the social remittances could indeed be traced to migration-related transfers, I base my analysis on in-depth interviews with return migrants and family members of Ukrainian migrants regarding their personal experiences of legality abroad and ‘at home’. I thereby reveal the nuances and subtle differences in the collective ‘Ukrainian’ legal consciousness beyond the ‘national mainstream’: where return migrants’ fatalism about law’s potential for upholding justice coexists with a sense of agency about capacity to achieve change outside the formal state law. Thirdly, I posit that legal consciousness not only reflects how certain socio-legal practices flow across borders, but also the ways in which the migrants themselves (and their families) innovate upon and interpret such ‘remittances’ in different ways. The results elaborate upon Levitt’s and Lamba-Nieves’ (2010) observations that social remittances work in both directions and are thus shaped not only by people’s experiences prior to migration and in their respective host countries, but are also adapted to the conditions they encounter upon their return.
The notion of a migration system is often invoked but it is rarely clearly defined or conceptuali... more The notion of a migration system is often invoked but it is rarely clearly defined or conceptualized. De Haas has recently provided a powerful critique of the current literature highlighting some important flaws that recur through it. In particular, migration systems tend to be identified as fully formed entities, and there is no theorization as to how they come into being and how they break down. The internal dynamics which drive such changes are not examined. Such critiques of migration systems relate to wider critiques of the concept of systems in the broader social science literature, where they are often presented as black boxes in which human agency is largely excluded. The challenge is how to theorize system dynamics in which the actions of people at one time contribute to the emergence of systemic linkages at a later time. This paper focuses on the genesis of migration systems and the notion of pioneer migration. It draws attention both to the role of particular individuals, the pioneers, and also the more general activity of pioneering which is undertaken by many migrants. By disentangling different aspects of agency, it is possible to develop hypotheses about how the emergence of migrations systems is related to the nature of the agency exercised by different pioneers or pioneering activities in different contexts.
Through an ethnographic study of the immigration law system in Russia, and interviews with legal ... more Through an ethnographic study of the immigration law system in Russia, and interviews with legal professionals and Central Asian migrants themselves, this paper asks: What are the lived experiences of the highly complex, though ambiguous immigration law regime of Russia? According to what ‘rules of the game’ does it operate? Are they specific to Russia only? This paper develops the concept of ‘the spiral effect of the law’ to capture the image of law, as formed through people's experiences of the legal system. Drawing on the comparative tool of analogy, this paper suggests that ‘the spiral effect of the law’ is perhaps not that different from the observable effects of immigration law in other major migration-receiving jurisdictions, namely the US, framed as ‘legal violence’ by Cecilia MenjÃvar and Leisy Abrego (2012).
This paper asks how to study migrants' relationship with the legal system upon arrival in the... more This paper asks how to study migrants' relationship with the legal system upon arrival in the host country? Concentrating on the issues of plurality, it articulates different ways of explaining migrants' legal adaptations to the new legal environment. To clarify the fragmented debates I organise the approaches around the relative importance of the main analytical perspectives: legal assimilation, legal pluralism and legal consciousness/culture. I critically examine the assimilationist approach and demonstrate how the alternative perspectives are both an advance and a critique of it. The paper concludes that for studying migrants' legal adaptations the relevant question between legal pluralism and legal consciousness/culture approaches should not be one of ‘either/or’ but ‘how much’ or ‘to what extent’, depending on the populations under scrutiny. They both contribute to new ways in which ‘law’ is conceptualised that have implications for the study of legal orders as a whole.
Much of the media coverage and academic literature on Russia suggests that the justice system... more Much of the media coverage and academic literature on Russia suggests that the justice system is unreliable, ineffective and corrupt. But what if we look beyond the stereotypes and preconceptions? This volume features contributions from a number of scholars who studied Russia empirically and in-depth, through extensive field research, observations in courts, and interviews with judges and other legal professionals as well as lay actors. A number of tensions in the everyday experiences of justice in Russia are identified and the concept of the 'administerial model of justice' is introduced to illuminate some of the less obvious layers of Russian legal tradition including: file-driven procedure, extreme legal formalism combined with informality of the pre-trial proceedings, followed by ritualistic format of the trial. The underlying argument is that Russian justice is a much more complex system than is commonly supposed, and that it both requires and deserves a more nuanced understanding.
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