AILA 2014 Annual Conference on Immigration Law

Morgan Lewis partners Eleanor Pelta and A. James Vázquez-Azpiri are panelists at the American Immigration Lawyers Association’s (AILA) 2014 AILA Annual Conference on Immigration Law.

RFE Toolbox (with A. James Vázquez-Azpiri)
Thursday, June 19, 2014
1:30–2:30 pm

This panel will explore strategies and creative approaches for handling RFEs successfully by holding USCIS accountable, using the language of policy memoranda, field manuals, precedent cases and other sources, and psychologically preparing yourself and the client to respond rationally no matter what comes in the mail.

• Managing Client Expectations and Emotional Responses
• Most Useful Tidbits from USCIS Memos and Precedent Cases
• Gems in the AFM: Errors of Law in RFE and Denial Templates
• The OOH, EDGE & Other External Reference Sources that USCIS Relies On
• Expert Testimony and the Skirball Standard

Ethical Issues in the PERM Process:  How to Advise Employers in Shifting Sands (with Eleanor Pelta)
Friday, June 20, 2014
8:10– 9:10 am

From dual representation to bona fide minimum requirements to applicant review, ethical issues abound in the PERM labor certification process.  Come learn about some of the top ethical challenges attorneys face in preparing and filing labor certification applications in an ever-more challenging administrative environment.

• Understanding the Rules: Non-payment by Employees
• Ethically Drafting Black and White Job Descriptions and Requirements in a Real World Filled With Gray
• How Involved May the Attorney Get in the Applicant Review Process?
• Changing Positions Within the Company and the Use of Prior Company Experience
• Dealing with Different Agendas in the Process:  The Employee vs. the Employer

Where:
Marriott Copley Place, Westin Copley Place, and the Hynes Convention Center in Boston