CASE: Motion to Terminate Removal Proceedings Based on an Approved I-130 Immediate Relative Spousal Petition
CLIENT: Senegalese
LOCATION: Baltimore, MD

Our client is a Senegalese citizen who came to the U.S. on an F-1 Student Visa in August 2006 to study at a college in Maryland.  As our previous success story explained, our client had a final order of removal in absentia, but his case was reopened after our office’s successful Motion to Reopen in January 2012.

Our client and his wife married in October 2010, and retained our office on March 3, 2011. Our office immediately filed an I-130 Petition with bona fide marriage evidence on March 23, 2011.  While the I-130 petition was pending, our client appeared at the Baltimore Immigration Court on February 15, 2012 for his initial master calendar hearing.  Attorney Sung Hee (Glen) Yu from our office represented him at the hearing, did pleadings and sought adjustment of status relief upon approval of the I-130 petition.

Our client’s I-130 interview was scheduled on May 4, 2012 at Baltimore USCIS Filed Office.  Prior to the interview, our office thoroughly prepared our client and his wife rough conference call. Attorney Yu also accompanied them for their interview. The interview lasted more than one hour, but the I-130 petition was eventually approved on the same day.

After the I-130 was approved, our office filed a Motion to Terminate Removal Proceedings with the I-485 application and supporting documents to the Baltimore Immigration Court. The DHS counsel in Baltimore did not oppose the Motion to Terminate Removal Proceedings. Ultimately, the Immigration Judge granted the Motion to Terminate Removal Proceedings without prejudice. Our client is not in removal proceedings anymore. Now, he can file his I-485 adjustment of status application to USCIS to obtain his green card.

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CASE: Marriage-Based Adjustment of Status
CLIENT: Filipina
LOCATION: Baltimore, MD

Our Filipino client came to the United States in 2003 with a G-4 visa, a non-immigrant visa which allows foreign officers or employees of international organizations of any rank to enter into the U.S. to engage in business activities and not for personal business and pleasure. She married a U.S. Citizen in March 2010 and retained our office on February 16, 2012 for her adjustment of status application.  Our firm prepared and filed the I-130 Petition and Adjustment of Status Application on February 27, 2012.  In the application, our firm also included Form I-508 (Waiver of Rights, Privileges, Exemptions and Immunities) and Form I-566 (A, G, or NATO Dependent Employment Authorization or Change/Adjustment To/From A, G, or NATO status) since our client was in G-4 status.  Everything went smoothly and the receipt notices, fingerprint appointment, and work permits all came on time. Prior to the interview, we thoroughly prepared our clients. On May 2, 2012, less than three months from filing the applications, our client was interviewed at the Baltimore, Maryland USCIS office. Two days later, on May 4, 2012, her green card application was approved.

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CASE: Motion to Reopen
CLIENT: Senegalese
LOCATION: Baltimore, MD

Our client came to the United States with a valid F-1 student visa from Senegal in 2006.  Later, he married his current U.S. Citizen wife, and retained our office for his adjustment of status case.  We prepared his I-130 petition and I-485 adjustment of status application, and filed the application on March 21, 2011.

However, a week before his I-130 interview, our client’s adjustment of status application was denied.  Unbeknownst to our client and us, our client was placed in removal proceeding and the Immigration Judge issued a final order against our client in 2010.  Our client was very surprised and informed our office that he never knew of his final order, his hearing, nor the fact that he was even placed in removal proceedings.

Our client never received a Notice to Appear, and as such did not know that he was in removal proceedings, did not know that had to go to Court, did not know that he had to inform the Immigration Court through Form EOIR-33 of his change of address, and ultimately did not know that he had a final order for not appearing at his 2010 hearing.  Our client asked us for help in his case and we advised him to file a Motion to Reopen in absentia order of removal.

On June 17, 2011, our office filed a Motion to Reopen with the Baltimore Immigration Court. Documentation of his address at the date of the final order, a detailed affidavit regarding his addresses and his circumstances around the final order date, documentation of the last address he provided to the immigration service prior to the final order date, and other supporting documents were submitted (39 exhibits).  However, the Department of Homeland Security filed an opposition to our Motion.  In response to the DHS’ brief, our office filed a Response to the Government’s Opposition to Motion on July 8, 2011.

On December 8, 2011, the Baltimore Immigration Court denied our motion. However, our office thought that IJ’s decision was incorrect. In response to the Court’s decision, our office filed a Motion to Reconsider on December 28, 2011. On January 31, 2012, the Baltimore Immigration Court granted our Motion to reconsider and sent our office a new hearing notice for our client. Our client now does not have the final order of removal and may seek relief with the Immigration Court, or seek termination of proceedings for CIS adjudication of his green card.

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CASE: Motion to Reopen and Rescind an In Absentia Order of Removal Based on Exceptional Circumstances
CLIENT: Moldovan
LOCATION: Baltimore, Maryland

Our Moldovan client came to the United States in 2008 with a J-1 visa.  Her ex-husband filed for asylum and she was a derivative applicant for this asylum application. After the application was filed, our client attended all necessary appointments related to her immigration applications.  She went to the CIS office to do her fingerprinting, and attended her asylum interview at the Arlington Asylum office.  Our client also attended her first Master Calendar hearing on March 2010 after her ex- husband’s asylum case was referred to the Baltimore Immigration Court.  Eventually, Respondent and her ex-husband’s individual hearing dates were scheduled on May 19, 2011.

Due to marital difficulties between our client and her ex-husband, her previous lawyer filed a Motion to Deconsolidate in October 2010.  Since our client was a derivative asylum applicant with her ex-husband, the Motion stated that she had her own independent grounds for seeking asylum relief.  Nonetheless, since she filed the Motion to Deconsolidate, she never got a response from her previous attorney nor the Court regarding the possible deconsolidation.

From May 16, 2011 to May 24, 2011, our client was in a great deal of pain with headaches, fever, and other symptoms that resulted from the extraction of her tooth on April 30, 2011.  On the days leading up to the hearings, our client got very sick, including May 19, 2011, the individual hearing date. Thus she did not appear before the Court on her individual hearing date.

She later learned about her order of removal on August 3, 2011.  On that day, the divorce between our client and her ex-husband was finalized.  When our client met her ex-husband, he informed her that she was ordered removed on May 19, 2011 because of her absence at the hearing. Her ex-husband was in that hearing and actually won his asylum case. Once she learned about the order of removal, she immediately contacted her previous attorney and explained to him that she was not able to attend her hearing due to illness.  Our client never received anything pertaining to her order of removal.  She intended to attend Court on May 19, 2011 but was too sick to do so.

Our client contacted and retained our office on August 15, 2011 for the Motion to Reopen and Rescind her in absentia order.  After listening to her reasons and learning the surrounding circumstances pertaining to her non-appearance in Court, our office determined that the Immigration Court will most likely grant our client’s Motion to Rescind an in absentia order based on exceptional circumstances.

We contended that our client could not attend at the hearing due to her medical condition and her absence was inevitable due to her sickness.  Our office included supporting documents such as a doctor’s letter, copies of her medical prescriptions, a letter from her employer stating her absence from work around the time of the Individual Hearing, etc.  Our office filed the Motion on August 18, 2011 within the statutory time frame.  The DHS, however, opposed our Motion, so we filed a response on August 31, 2011.   On September 20, 2011, the Baltimore Immigration Court granted our client’s Motion and rescinded the order of removal.  Our client’s case is re-opened, and she can now pursue her asylum claim.

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CASE: I-130 and Consular Processing for Petitioner’s two minor stepdaughters
LOCATION: Petitioner: Maryland; Beneficiaries: Philippines

Our client is a U.S. citizen who married a Filipina in Maryland. Thereafter, he filed an I-130 Petition for his wife and his wife eventually obtained a green card.  However, his two stepdaughters did not get green cards at the time his wife adjusted her status.  His two minor stepdaughters were residing in Philippines. Apparently, they did not know that the Petition could have also been simultaneously filed for his stepchildren.

Once his wife got her green card, our client filed the I-130 petition on behalf of his two stepdaughters in the Philippines.  He filed the I-130 by himself and the USCIS issued an extensive RFE in October 2010.  Upon the issuance of RFE, our client contacted our firm and sought for legal assistance from us.

We initially set up an appointment with our client at our Washington DC office. He is the CEO of his own company and apparently did not have time to go to DC, so we drove to Columbia Maryland and met him there to discuss the case. He retained our office immediately, and our office started to work on the Response to RFE and Packet 3 and 4 for his stepdaughters.

Our office filed the Response to RFE on November 24, 2010.  In the Response brief, our office fully explained that the marriage between our client and his wife is bona fide and explained why his wife and step-daughters’ petitioners were not filed concurrently.  Everything went smoothly, and the daughters’ I-130 and immigrant visa interview was scheduled on May 4, 2011 at the U.S. Embassy in Manila, Philippines.  The U.S. Embassy in Manila eventually approved the immigrant visas for his stepdaughters.

Our client’s step-daughters are now here in the United States reunited with their mother and step-father.

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