Mackenzie Clarke

Mackenzie is a paralegal in the firm’s Business and Family Immigration department, where she assists individuals, families, and employers with a wide range of immigration matters. She brings six years of legal experience to her role, including three years as a legal assistant in the firm's immigration department before advancing to paralegal. Mackenzie is passionate about supporting the immigrant community and helping clients navigate complex immigration processes with confidence.

In her role, Mackenzie works closely with clients throughout the immigration process, providing guidance, support, and regular communication at every stage of a matter. She assists attorneys with a wide range of family- and employment-based immigration matters, including immigrant and nonimmigrant visa applications, family sponsorship petitions, adjustment of status filings, employment authorization applications, naturalization applications, and waivers. Her experience also includes Special Immigrant Juvenile petitions, U visa petitions, DACA renewals, and immigration records requests through the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA).

Outside of work, Mackenzie enjoys reading, exploring Portland’s food scene, and all things women’s sports.

Prior to joining Black Helterline, Mackenzie worked as a legal assistant in California, where she supported attorneys and clients in family immigration and estate planning matters. The experience provided valuable insight into the challenges many immigrants and families face and strengthened her interest in immigration law, international relations, and human rights.

• Volunteer English as a Second Language (ESL) teacher