When and Why should you hire an immigration lawyer?

When and why should you hire an immigration lawyer?

Ideally, everyone who is seeking an immigration benefit, such as a green card, should see an attorney for an evaluation of eligibility for the benefit sought. For example, someone who marries a U.S. citizen may think they can adjust status to get a green card by simply filing a few forms. But if the immigrant spouse came here without a visa, then they are not eligible to adjust status (though they may have other options). And there is a LOT more involved than filing some forms.

An initial consultation is generally not costly, and often, an attorney will apply the fee paid for a consultation towards representation. During a consultation, the attorney will explain what immigration options a person has (or doesn’t have) based on his or her situation. You can ask what the timeframes and costs are for each option, and understand the process, forms, government fees and documentation you will be required to submit. Then you can decide whether to hire the attorney to represent you in your case.

There is a huge amount of information on the internet, but relying on that is dangerous—the information is often not prepared by lawyers, many times the web sites are not updated when regulations and policies change (which they do frequently), and sometimes the information contained in them is just plain wrong. Also, relying on someone else’s experiences is risky as everyone has a unique situation and you will not be aware of all the differences in your case from one that someone writes about on the web. Working with a lawyer helps ensure that you are getting up-to-date and accurate legal information, that time limits are observed and the attorney doesn’t merely prepare the forms and take a fee. Your lawyer should be available to you for questions throughout the entire process of your case, should explain every step clearly, and should be responsive to you.

How should you choose which immigration lawyer to hire?

Your lawyer should be a member of the American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA). Among other benefits, AILA members have access to liaisons in each state and on a national level to help deal with issues from contacting a field office director at your local U.S. Customs and Immigration Services (USCIS) office, to a Senator or Congressional representative, to your state Department of Motor Vehicles.

Read reviews for the attorney online, and call to speak with the attorney. Then, make an appointment for a consultation. If during your meeting the attorney is attentive, and you believe she or he understands your issue, and if all your questions are answered clearly, then you can feel comfortable that you will be well-represented by the person. Ask the lawyer if she or he has handled situations like yours, and what the outcomes have been. If you are not comfortable with the person, move on to get a new consultation elsewhere. You don’t have to choose the first lawyer you meet. It may cost a bit to have multiple consultations, but that is better than signing a contract for representation with a lawyer who isn’t right for your case.

Do you have an interesting, or a crazy, immigration story that you were able to successfully resolve? 

I recently represented a client who sought my representation for an immigrant visa for his spouse who was living overseas. They needed to go through a process at the U.S. consulate in the foreign spouse’s country. In evaluating their documentation, I realized the couple was married several weeks before the foreign spouse’s divorce was approved. In that country, a couple who is divorcing must register the divorce, and they are given a certification of the registration. However, that was not adequate, they needed to have the final approval from their government, or a court decree, that stated the divorce was final.

An attorney will examine all civil documents to make sure that the birth certificate, marriage certificate, divorce decrees, etc., are all the exact type that will be accepted by the U.S. government. In this case, I explained the situation to the couple–they were not legally married–they had married before a final divorce decree had been received. At the point I was reviewing their material, they did have the final divorce decree, so I advised them to get married again! The “second” marriage was valid, as it was performed after the granting of the prior marriage’s final divorce decree. It was difficult logistically, as the U.S. spouse needed to fly overseas to do this, get a marriage license there, register the marriage in that country and have all the documentation translated to English. But once this was complete, they were able to file the appropriate paperwork and the documentation indicated both parties were legally eligible to marry, and their case was approved by the U.S. government–success!

The couple told me that without my help they would never have known this would be an issue. Their case would have been denied, and they would have remained separated for a much longer time, would have had to file everything all over again, and would have had to pay the government fees all over again. They not only avoided all that, they also have two wedding anniversaries, and they plan to always celebrate them both!