Page 7 - NC Triangle Vol 7 No 1

GIGI GARDNER | PHOTO BY: HEADSHOTS AND CORPORATE.
DOUGLASS: Yes, and for students, in the past, there was more leeway because of the need to navigate through various moving pieces - universities, government agencies and sometimes employers – with respect to their student status. at’s not the case anymore. ey are no longer going to be given this lati- tude. As a result, now even an administrative error or employer failure can result in a stu- dent being deemed to be here unlawfully.
As students look to move from a student visa to an H1B work visa to then possibly a green card, in the employment context, if they were ever out of status or violated their status, that process in now in jeopardy. And they may not know it. ey might have waited ten years, invested tens of thousands of dollars, and be sitting in their green card interview when this comes up and bites them.
AALM: What about the H1B visa and lottery?
DOUGLASS: ere is a lot of uncertainty regarding the H1B program, which is the mainstay of employers seeking to hire foreign workers. How this new, potential, pre-regis- tration for the lottery will play out remains to be seen. We think companies need to start planning for the long-term by diversifying their foreign national workforce both in terms of what their jobs are and where they come from. ere are other options available for employers who are willing to be strategic.
AALM: What do criminal defense attorneys need to know about the tighter enforcement?
GARDNER:We get calls all the time from criminal defense attorneys who are in court with an immigrant client working on a plea deal. ey want to know “will this get him or her deported.” Most of the time there is no quick yes or no answer to that question. It’s so much more complicated than that.
It’s nuanced, and we need a lot of time to re- search the speci c criminal statute, the entire criminal history of that person, how long they have been in the US, their immigration his- tory, and the status of their family. e crime may potentially expose them to removal pro- ceedings but there may be some relief avail- able to them, and they could actually wind up being able to stay in the country lawfully.
e client, not the attorney, needs us to ad- vise them.
AALM: So perhaps there is a silver lining to the amped-up immigration enforcement.
GARDNER:For many who thought they were comfortable and would be ne before, resolving their immigration status has now become a priority.
GARDNER LAW PLLC
421 Fayetteville St., Suite 1100 Raleigh, NC 27601
(919) 987-2101 gardnerlawpllc.com
As a result, now even an administrative error or employer failure can result in
a student being deemed
to be here unlawfully.”
AttorneyAtLawMagazine.com
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