Law Firm News

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Law Firm News

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Dinsmore & Shohl LLP

Postioning Future Permanent Residence Cases if Priority Date not Current
In some cases, employers secure an approved labor certification application for a foreign national employee and proceed to file an Employment Based Second (EB2) or Employment Based Third (EB3) Immigrant Petition on behalf of a foreign national employee. Due to the accelerated processing times under PERM, the time period between PERM labor certification application case filing and approval is often rather short. In an increasing number of cases, the foreign national employee's priority date is not current and they are not eligible to file a permanent residence (""green card"") application even after waiting for the PERM and Immigrant Petition cases to be approved. This memo addresses the steps that the foreign national can take to most effectively position the case for the future.

Let's use an example. Company files a PERM application on January 1, 2006 and U.S. Department of Labor (""DOL"") approves it on March 1, 2006. Company files an EB2 Immigrant Petition on March 21, 2006 and U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (""CIS"") approves it on October 21, 2006. The employee is a Chinese citizen.

Applying the law to the facts, the Chinese national's priority date (place in line under the quota system) was established by the filing of the PERM application on January 1, 2006. The Chinese national can see what the current ""cut off"" date is by looking at the U.S. Department of State (""DOS"")'s monthly visa bulletin at: http://travel.state.gov/visa/frvi/bulletin/bulletin_3046.html. Each month, usually in the middle of the month, DOS posts the cut off dates for employment-based applicants. Each column, such as EB1, EB2, EB3, bears a cut off date with either a letter ""C"" (for current), ""U"" (for unavailable) or a number (meaning that only persons with priority dates on or earlier than the listed date) can apply for permanent residence for the posted month. In the above example, the Chinese citizen cannot file her permanent residence application yet since her priority date is January 1, 2006 and, as of the November 2006 Visa Bulletin only would-be applicants can file their permanent residence case if their PD is April 15, 2005 or earlier.

If your priority date is not yet current, aside from tracking the monthly bulletin as we do to identify cases that become current, you can take the following steps to position yourself for a future permanent residence filing:

1. Visit our website at http://immigration.dinslaw.com/. Click on Resources. Click on Immigrant Visas. Click Scroll down to adjustment of status versus consular processing. If, like most people, you have chosen U.S. based processing, click on How To Apply for Adjustment of Status.
2. You should proactively collect originals or certified copies (issued by the appropriate governmental agency) of all birth, marriage, and divorce certificates in advance for every family member who will apply. You should match these against the Foreign Affairs Manual (FAM) which state the criteria for such certificates The FAM link is in our posting. If you cannot obtain a necessary certificate or if it is unavailable, please contact us for guidance. Keep all original documents in a safe place.
3. If you have ever been arrested or convicted, you should be certain to notify Dinsmore & Shohl about this so it does not become a last minute surprise prior to case filing. The U.S. government forms require you to disclose all arrests and convictions even if the charge was dismissed or the conviction was expunged or the record was sealed and even if the arrest or conviction took place abroad. You would want to secure original or certified copies of all arrest, conviction and disposition records and alert us in advance since legal research as to the impact of the conviction may be necessary.
4. You should not obtain your sealed medical exams if your priority date is not reasonably close to being current (if your priority date is more than 3 months from being current) because medicals are only valid for one year. They must be submitted with a permanent resident case within one year of issuance. However, we do recommend that you read our vaccination information sheet and obtain records to show that you are up-to-date on your vaccinations so your ability to complete your medical exam is not delayed as a result.
5. You are welcome to fill out the forms on our site in advance and this may be advisable so you can locate all information that you will need later. However, please be aware that the forms change over time so you may need to update them later. You should hold onto them until requested by Dinsmore & Shohl.
6. If your priority date is close to becoming current, you should consult with Dinsmore & Shohl about the impact of any foreign travel on your ability to file your permanent residence application and re-enter the U.S. after such travel. Priority dates can retrogress so you generally want to file as soon as you are eligible to when your priority date becomes current and not have a trip that gets in the way in case filing (you must be physically in the U.S. to apply for adjustment of status).

We hope that this tips enable you to work with us to more quickly prepare, assemble and file your permanent residence application via adjustment of status once your priority date does become current.

10-30-2006

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Department of Fair Employment and Housing

Real Estate Attorney James Richman Joins Arnold & Porter's Los Angeles Office
Arnold & Porter LLP announced today that senior real estate attorney James Richman is joining the Los Angeles office as a partner. Mr. Richman brings to Arnold & Porter an established real estate practice and extensive experience in West Coast real estate deals for investors, developers, and owners, as well as construction and real estate-related litigation, that will enhance Arnold & Porter's real estate practice.

“Jim's expertise complements our recent expansion of capabilities in corporate and intellectual property transactional work in the LA office as well as our national real estate practice,” said Ronald Johnston, co-head of Arnold & Porter’s Los Angeles office. “We will be able to expand our services for our real estate clients on the West Coast, not only in transactional, but also litigation matters. He is a great addition.”

Mr. Richman’s arrival in Los Angeles comes shortly after that of Thomas McLain, an international transactions lawyer, who joined the office last month and has extensive experience in Asia that encompasses major real estate matters, such as theme park developments. Arnold & Porter’s national real estate group represents Fortune 500 companies, major nonprofits, professional service firms, developers, hospitality companies, and others in major real estate matters across the U.S.

Mr. Richman was the chair of the real estate group at his former firm in Los Angeles. He negotiated a wide variety of transactions including the purchase and sale of commercial properties; the acquisition of land for the development of residential subdivisions; shopping centers and office buildings; joint ventures; real estate limited partnerships, secured real estate loans; long-term ground leases; large commercial space leases; construction contracts; owner/architect agreements; construction management contracts; and workouts. He devotes a significant part of his practice to the representation of large corporate and institutional clients but has also represented developers, trusts, and tax-exempt organizations and private foundations in real estate and real estate-related matters.

Mr. Richman served as Chair of the Real Property Section of the Los Angeles County Bar Association, as a member of the Legal Committee of the Southern California Building Industry Association and as a member of the Santa Clarita Governmental Relations Committee of the BIA. He has been named to the Best Lawyers in America and Southern California Super Lawyers.

Mr. Richman received his J.D. from the University of California’s Boalt Hall School of Law, where he was an Associate Editor of the California Law Review. He served as an extern law clerk for Stanley Mosk, Associate Justice of the California Supreme Court and for Harry Pregerson, Judge of the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California.

Arnold & Porter's Los Angeles office provides experienced counsel in a wide range of specialties and represents a diverse client base. Sixty attorneys practice in the areas of litigation, antitrust and trade regulation, intellectual property and technology, employment, partnership disputes, corporate transactions, securities regulation, real estate, federal and state taxation, internal investigations, and white collar defense.

10-30-2006

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Blank Rome LLP.

Maritime Associate Awarded German Marine Insurance Scholarship
Maritime associate David D. Jensen has been awarded the 2006 Dabelstein & Passehl Shipping and Marine Insurance Scholarship. Mr. Jensen is the sole American chosen, and in October 2006 will be participating with four other young maritime attorneys from other parts of the world at a two-week seminar in Hamburg, Germany, which will also include a day in the Munich offices of Zurich-based reinsurer Swiss Re.

Mr. Jensen will gain a first-hand introduction to the legalities and practicalities of the German shipping, transport, and insurance industries, and meet with representatives of many German insurance carriers.

Shipping and marine insurance are by nature international, and require substantial knowledge of foreign markets, customs, and laws. To help meet young maritime attorneys’ need for international experience, Dabelstein & Passehl, one of Blank Rome’s correspondent law firms in Germany, sponsors the seminar and scholarship.

10-30-2006

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Akerman & Senterfitt, Attorneys At Law

AKERMAN SENTERFITT REACHES 500 ATTORNEYS AND CONSULTANTS
Akerman Senterfitt has reached a new milestone, having now grown to 500 attorneys and consultants in its twelve offices across the country. The firm's ongoing recruitment and the addition in 2006 of its New York, Los Angeles and Northern Virginia offices contributed to the achievement. The firm is the largest in the state of Florida and now employs more than 1,100 people nationwide.

""Our growth better enables us to serve our clients,"" said Tom Cardwell, Chairman and CEO of Akerman Senterfitt. ""We expect to be a leader in our practices and geographic areas.""

Founded in 1920, the firm is now the largest in Florida with offices in all of Florida's major metropolitan areas. In the last year, the firm has added offices outside Florida in New York and Los Angeles and increased the size of its Washington, D.C. office.

As a part of its growth, the firm has added a number of outstanding lawyers and consultants. Additions in the last year have included several former litigators from the Department of Justice and the Securities and Exchange Commission, the former General Counsel of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, the former Attorney General of Puerto Rico, the former President of the Florida Free Trade Area of the Americas, a former Chief Compliance Officer for General Electric, two former Directors at FEMA, and 30 attorneys from nationally-recognized construction and government contracts firm Wickwire Gavin.

Sixty-nine Akerman Senterfitt attorneys are named in Best Lawyers in America 2006 and 30 are ranked in Chambers USA: America’s Leading Lawyers for Business. Chambers also ranks the firm's practices #1 in the areas of Corporate/M&A, Antitrust, Insurance and Zoning/Land Use. The firm is the 100th largest law firm in the U.S., as listed in The National Law Journal's Top 250.

10-30-2006

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McGuireWoods LLP

Charlottesville Lawyers Present "Anatomy of an ADA Trial"
Craig Wood, Melissa Riley and Matt Quatrara (all Charlottesville) presented a mock trial and panel presentation on "The Anatomy of an ADA Trial" to the Albemarle-Charlottesville Human Resources Association on Sept. 14.

10-30-2006

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McGuireWoods LLP

Rob Niccolini Published in Health Lawyers News
Health Lawyers News published the cover story "Supreme Court Clears the Tracks for Oncoming Retaliation Claims: Will Your Workplace be Ready?" co-authored by Rob Niccolini (Baltimore) in its October 2006 edition.

10-30-2006

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Finnegan, Henderson, Farabow, Garrett & Dunner, LLP

Chinese Officials Study U.S. Intellectual Property System
Policy makers, judges and executives steering China’s economic boom have just concluded a 20-day trip to the United States to investigate how Americans tackle intellectual property. The exchange allowed American scholars, businesses and law firms to learn more about Chinese intellectual property laws for cases when U.S. companies could be taken to court there. “It’s a system we really don’t understand,” said Lily Lim of Finnegan Henderson. “It’s particularly important that we do, because as we sell more goods there, it opens us up to a lot more risk.

10-29-2006

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