The Intersection of Employment– and Humanitarian-Based Immigration
| Live Event Date: 02/24/2023 | ||
|---|---|---|
| Format | Length | CLE Eligible |
| Web Seminar | 90 min. | No |
A firm understanding of the legal complexities presented by the intersection of employment– and humanitarian-based immigration has never been more critical. As devastating humanitarian crises continue to unfold across the globe, and with the Russian invasion of Ukraine reaching the one-year mark on February 24, both the list of countries designated for Temporary Protected Status (TPS) and the number of individuals with pending asylum applications are at their highest levels in decades. Notably, there are now paths to permanent residence available for potentially hundreds of thousands of individuals on TPS, due to the USCIS rescission of Matter of Z–R–Z–C–. Though U.S. employers consider these individuals highly valuable, they have been forced to wait years for an opportunity to sponsor them.
During this seminar, designed for both business and humanitarian attorneys, our panel of experts will explore these topics and help guide you through the problems and possibilities they present. They also will discuss pathways and strategies to regularize the status of these individuals via both immigrant and nonimmigrant employment-based immigration, including how to answer employer questions about humanitarian options.
Featured Topics:
- The path to employment-based adjustment of status
- Securing an Employment Authorization Document (EAD)
- The latest TPS developments
- The big picture for those with DACA status, and how to proactively plan for the long-term
- Nonimmigrant and immigrant visas at the consulate for asylees
- How do these strategies apply if your client has an order of removal?
AILA Membership Benefit – Access to Free Seminar Recordings
Enjoy access to free seminar recordings (from October 2020–present) as an AILA Member. AILA encourages live attendance for those wishing to ask the speaker questions. Recordings will be available approximately two weeks after the live event date. AILA members can access these seminars for free.
Matthew J. Maiona (DL), Boston, MA
Matthew J. Maiona is a partner at Maiona Ward Immigration Law in Boston. Mr. Maiona represents employers and employment-based clients nation-wide. He is a frequent lecturer on the topic of immigration law and is a contributing author to MCLE’s: Immigration Practice Manual, as well as multiple AILA conference publications. He is a graduate of Boston College and Suffolk University Law. Mr. Maiona teaches Business Immigration Law at Suffolk University Law and is former co-chair of the Federal Bar Association Massachusetts Chapter Immigration Section. Mr. Maiona is a member of the national AILA Media Advocacy Committee, as well as a member of the Board of Trustees at Boston College High School. Mr. Maiona is a Past Chapter Chair of AILA New England.
Gregory H. Siskind, AILA Board of Governors/Benefits Litigation Committee, AILA Author, AILA’s Immigration Law Practice and Procedure Manual: A “Cookbook” of Essential Practice Materials, 2nd ed., Memphis, TN
Gregory H. Siskind is a founder of Siskind Susser, PC and serves on the Board of Governors of the American Immigration Lawyers Association. He has written 7 books on immigration law (including the AILA Cookbook) and created the first lawyer blog and the first immigration law website. Currently, he is developing AI-based web applications for immigration lawyers through Visalaw.ai. He has received the AILA Advocacy Award, the ABA’s James E. Keane Award for e-Lawyering, and the AILA Litigation Award.
Kathryn R. Weber, AILA Asylum and Refugee Committee Co-Chair, Chicago, IL
Kathryn R. Weber is a Partner at Scott D. Pollock & Associates, P.C. in Chicago, IL and has been practicing immigration law since 2004. She practices in the areas of family-based immigration, waivers, religious workers, naturalization, removal defense, asylum, VAWA/U visas, and immigration litigation and appeals. She served on the Executive Board of the AILA Chicago Chapter between 2010 and 2016, and has chaired and served on numerous AILA Chicago Chapter and AILA National committees. She is currently Co-Chair of the AILA National Asylum and Refugee Committee and a member of the AILA Chicago Chapter Asylum Office Liaison Committee and CBP Liaison Committee.
Kari Ann Fonte, AILA USCIS Field Operations Liaison Committee Vice Chair, Coral Gables, FL
Kari Ann Fonte has practiced immigration since 1995 and is Senior Partner of Fonte Friz-Garcia Immigration Firm. She is Board Certified in Immigration by the Florida Bar and admitted to the U.S. District Court, Southern District of Florida and the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals. She serves as Vice-Chair of AILA National’s USCIS Field Operations Committee and was President of AILA’s South Florida Chapter. She is Adjunct Professor of Immigration Law at St. Thomas University.