On June 23, 2023, the U.S. Supreme Court issued its long-awaited immigration opinion in the case of U.S. v. Texas. The justices agreed 8-1 that the states who filed the lawsuit against the federal government over what the states perceived as the non-enforcement of immigration laws could not sue the…
When applying for a green card, whether the application be for a marriage green card or an immediate relative, you should assume that the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) will conduct a thorough background check. Filing an accurate and thorough green card application is all the more important if…
On August 2nd, 2022, the Eleventh Circuit published Bastias v. U.S. Atty Gen’l, No. 21-11416, which holds that a conviction under Florida Statute §827.03(2)(d) for child neglect is a deportable offense under the Immigration and Nationality Act §237(a)(2)(E)(i). INA §237(a)(2)(E)(i) makes a non-citizen deportable if he or she is convicted…
Today, the Eleventh Circuit released what looks like may be a landmark decision in Said v. U.S. Atty Gen’l. This court opinion affects all non-citizens who have or will have Florida marijuana convictions. Under §212(a)(2)(A)(i)(II) of the Immigration and Nationality Act, any alien who commits a violation of any state…
It has finally happened, President Biden is set to announce that as of Monday, March 8, 2021, Venezuelans in the United States may qualify for Temporary Protected Status, also known as TPS. WHO WILL QUALIFY FOR VENEZUELAN TPS? The exact requirements for Venezuelan TPS have not yet been…
I’m a Canadian Citizen and have a prior criminal conviction. How can I obtain a waiver to get into the United States? Canadian and the United States citizens enjoy relaxed immigration policies when traveling between the two countries. But those relaxed policies can sometimes cause people to falsely believe that…
A new decision, Matter of Castillo-Perez, 27 I&N Dec. 664 (A.G. 2019), released by the Attorney General has created a rebuttable presumption that a person with multiple DUI convictions during the relevant time period does not have “good moral character.” This means that if a person had old DUI convictions…
Although a relatively recent United States Supreme Court decision held that a conviction for simple battery in the State of Florida could not serve as a crime of violence, an Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeal decision distinguished that a felony battery conviction is a “crime of violence,” at least for…
Injunctions for protection, also commonly referred to as restraining orders, continue to serve as a potential pitfall for non – United States citizens. Injunctions are extremely easy to obtain and little evidence is required to obtain one. Often, a judge will issue an injunction based solely on the word of…
There are two potential provisions of law that DHS (Department of Homeland Security) use to deport non – United States citizens for prostitution convictions. The first is by claiming that it is a “crime involving moral turpitude.” The second, which is much more severe, is that it is an “aggravated…