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Trends for O-1 “Extraordinary Ability/Achievement” Visas in 2018
August 29th, 2018
August 29, 2018 The year 2018 shows that USCIS is taking a tougher stance on O-1 visas. Cases at the Administrative Appeals Office demonstrate certain trends, along with Hill & Piibe’s experience on its own cases. The USCIS website lists O-1 vi…
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Ninth Circuit Criticizes The BIA For Failing To Exercise Thoughtfulness When Analyzing New Evidence In An Ethiopian Torture Case
June 27th, 2017
Last Friday, the Ninth Circuit ruled on a case that gives good guidance on two potentially complex issues. In Agonafer v. Sessions, the Court first examined its jurisdiction to consider a late-filed Motion to Reopen a removal/deportation case for pur…
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Ninth Circuit Judges Sound Off In Two Cases, Highlighting The Debate Over Justice And The Future of Immigration Law And Policy
June 2nd, 2017
On Tuesday May 30, 2017 the Ninth Circuit published two decisions, wherein two judges on opposing sides of the spectrum weighed in with their opinions and comments to underscore different viewpoints of immigration policy. Habitual Drunkards, and How…
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Ninth Circuit Revokes Asylum Status After Complicated Analysis of the Effect of a Criminal Conviction for Attempted Sexual Abuse
May 27th, 2017
Asylum status protects a person from being sent back to a country where he would be persecuted. However, that status can be revoked due to subsequent criminal behavior that amounts to an “aggravated felony” as defined by immigration law. In Diego…
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New BIA Case on "Family" as a Particular Social Group for Asylum Persecution: Hatfields Versus McCoys?
May 25th, 2017
Today’s decision from the BIA is a head-scratcher. In Matter of L-E-A-, the BIA examined the claim of a man who was persecuted because his father owned a grocery store. The persecutors were members of La Familia Michoacana, a criminal cartel in Mex…
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Another BIA Decision on Persecutors: How Much Proof is Needed
May 18th, 2017
The “persecutor bar” prevents immigration benefits from being granted to applicants who persecuted others in the past. Today, the immigration appellate court (BIA) confirmed just how far the government must go to invoke the bar. In Matter of M-B-…
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New BIA Case: Guarding a Tortured Prisoner is "Persecution," Even If You Had No Intent To Harm
May 5th, 2017
The Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA) is the first appellate court for all deportation/removal cases nationwide. Today in a decision titled Matter of J.M. Alvarado, it denied a green card to a man who served in the El Salvador National Guard, becaus…
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Court Rules That TPS Can Count for Adjustment of Status
April 4th, 2017
On Friday, March 31, 2017 in Ramirez v. Brown, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that TPS (Temporary Protected Status) qualifies as “lawful status” for purposes of Change of Status and Adjustment of Status. This clarifies an issue that wil…
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Brief Summary of New Deportation Policies
We are preparing a newsletter with full coverage of all the new immigration policies since Trump took office last month. But until then, here is a short summary, with some explanation of how it can affect you/your family/your business. Most of the ne…
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What to do Right Now: Donald Trump Elected
Stunned by events, immigrants awoke this morning to see Donald Trump elected to the White House. Many are now fearful, due to President-elect Trump’s anti-immigrant rhetoric and his promises to un-do current immigration laws. What To Expect, How To…
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