Biography
Nikou Salamat is an Associate Lawyer at Esna Law PC, a Toronto-based law firm focused exclusively on Canadian immigration, refugee, and citizenship law. Her practice focuses on immigration and refugee litigation and complex immigration applications.
Before joining Esna Law, Nikou practised at a Toronto legal clinic, where she provided trauma-informed representation to survivors of gender-based violence in immigration and refugee matters.
A graduate of the University of Toronto Faculty of Law, Nikou advocated for low-income clients in immigration and refugee matters at a student legal clinic throughout law school. She then summered and articled in refugee law, representing clients with precarious immigration status in refugee, immigration detention and inadmissibility proceedings. Her practice is driven by a commitment to justice for all migrants and refugees.
Nikou's practice includes
- Litigation: Representing clients in immigration and refugee matters in the Federal Court and before the Immigration and Refugee Board.
- Refugee matters: Refugee claims and cessation proceedings before the Refugee Protection Division, appeals to the Refugee Appeal Division, Pre-Removal Risk Assessments and danger opinion proceedings.
- Inadmissibility and removal: Admissibility hearings and detention reviews before the Immigration Division, and appeals to the Immigration Appeal Division.
- Humanitarian applications: Humanitarian and compassionate (H&C) applications.
Education & bar admission
- Juris Doctor, University of Toronto Faculty of Law
- Honours Bachelor of Social Sciences in Conflict Studies and Human Rights, University of Ottawa
- Called to the Ontario Bar in 2025
- Exclusively practises immigration and refugee law
Community & professional involvement
- Recipient, Kim Phúc Award for Youth Peace Leadership, Canadian Voice of Women for Peace (2020)
Beyond the office
Outside the office, Nikou enjoys discovering new music and exploring art exhibitions.
Publications, talks & media
Publications
- "Access Denied: Calling for the Revocation of Canada's Refugee Status Document Requirement in the Private Sponsorship of Refugees Program," co-authored policy paper (2022), calling for broader access to private refugee sponsorship following the 2021 Afghan refugee crisis
- "Lockdown on Peace? COVID-19's Impact on Women Peacebuilders," co-authored, Social Politics (Oxford University Press), 2022: a peer-reviewed article on women peacebuilders in Colombia, South Sudan, the Philippines and Ukraine
Talks and media
- Panellist, Symposium on Gender, Peace, Education and International Law, London School of Economics and Political Science (2021)
