Cool Stuff We Have Done
Note: This list is far from comprehensive. Just stuff we are especially proud of.
***
Between 2022 and 2023, we have filed at least 14 mandamus petitions to force USCIS to expedite long-delayed asylum interviews. Most of those petitions resulted in interviews being scheduled within 60 days.
5/2023 National Interest Waiver approved for coiled tubing / fracking expert.
4/2023 The Board of Immigration Appeals approved our motion to reopen based on prior ineffective assistance of counsel for a persecuted transgender woman.
10/2022 USCIS approved a refile of an EB1A extraordinary ability petition for a passive fire protection specialist. The original case was denied back in 2020. (Refiles do get approved, but you have to offer USCIS something new to consider).
7/2022 We got a client his premium processing fees back from USCIS! The Service issued a request for evidence four days past the 15-day mandatory premium processing deadline. On the case status update webpage they tried to misrepresent the date of issuance, but they inadvertently put the correct dates on the document itself, proving it was issued late. It took over a year (after case approval), but they finally sent our client a check for $2500.
6/2022 The Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals granted our petition for review, agreeing that our client was not properly removed in absentia because her Notice to Appear was defective in light of Ramirez de Ayala v. Garland, No. 20-60866 (5th Cir., June 15, 2022).
4/2022 USCIS reopened and approved our EB1A extraordinary ability petition (after we filed a lawsuit) for an electronics expert (smart power grids and electric cars). Critically, we found evidence her research was cited in the R&D of a famous designer of supercars.
3/2022 After we filed a Petition for Review with the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals (and two briefs), the Department of Justice agreed to remand to the BIA the denial of an asylum case for a horrifically abused Honduran woman.
1/2022 The Fifth Circuit issued a published decision in our case Amin v. Mayorkas, F.4th --- (5th Cir. 2021). This is the Fifth Circuit's first precedential decision on Extraordinary Ability petitions.
12/2021 After we filed a lawsuit in federal court, USCIS granted an I-140 for a construction project estimator they had previously denied based on alleged failure to show "ability to pay."
11/2021 We were hired to handle a request for evidence for an EB1A Extraordinary Ability case for a geotechnical services engineer. After our response, the case was approved.
10/2021 After we filed a lawsuit in federal court on one of our own cases, USCIS reopened and granted an extraordinary ability petition for a self-employed inventor.
8/2021 EB1A Extraordinary Ability petition approved for a geologist in the oil and gas industry (no request for evidence).
6/2021 After we filed a lawsuit in federal court, USCIS reopened and granted an EB1A application for a Chinese packaging engineer.
12/2020 After we filed a lawsuit in federal court, USCIS reopened and granted an adjustment of status application it had previously denied three times.
12/2020 EB1A Extraordinary Ability petition approved for noise and vibration specialist in the oil and gas industry.
12/2020 EB1A Extraordinary Ability petition approved for networking technology expert.
12/2020 Affirmative asylum application approved for Southeast Asian human rights advocate.
12/2020 EB1A Extraordinary Ability petition approved for SAP expert and product inventor.
11/2020 EB1A Extraordinary Ability petition approved for analytics consultant.
11/2020 Another firm hired us to file a lawsuit in federal court on an extraordinary ability petition for a Chinese neurosurgeon. The government agreed to reopen and granted the case.
11/2020 EB1A Extraordinary Ability petition approved for LNG Consultant.
10/2020 USCIS approved an adjustment of status for a South American client filed by her stepson from whose father she had been divorced for nearly 50 years. We successfully proved the client and her stepson had maintained a mother-son relationship through all this time.
10/2020 USCIS reopened and approved an EB1A extraordinary ability application for an oil and gas executive after we filed a lawsuit in federal court.
9/2020 A client asked us to file a lawsuit on an I-140 petition denial where USCIS had improperly accused her of fraud. In response to our lawsuit and detailed explanation of the mix up, USCIS reopened the denial and approved the petition.
9/2020 USCIS reversed its denial of another H-1B petition for an IT Analyst after we filed a lawsuit in federal court.
8/2020 Another firm hired us to file a lawsuit on a Multinational Manager immigrant petition. In response to the lawsuit, USCIS reopened and granted the case.
7/2020 EB1A Extraordinary Ability petition approved for award-winning cake artist.
6/2020 EB1A Extraordinary Ability petition approved for designer of explosion-resistant buildings.
5/2020 USCIS reversed its denial of an H-1B petition for a network and computer systems analyst after we filed a lawsuit in federal court.
4/2020 USCIS reversed its denial of an H-1B renewal application for a Business Technology Analyst (and denial of a motion to reopen) after we filed a lawsuit in federal court.
3/2020 A client hired us to file a mandamus lawsuit to force USCIS to accept an I-140 application it had rejected improperly. In response to the lawsuit, USCIS agreed to receipt the I-140 application.
10/2019 We filed a mandamus lawsuit to force USCIS to adjudicate a naturalization petition which had been pending for nearly three years after the client’s interview. After unsuccessfully trying to get the case sent back to USCIS, the government agreed to adjudicate it. They stipulated to dismissal and approved the application.
2/2020--A client came to us with a Notice of Intent to Deny a green card application. We suspected USCIS was applying the regulations from the wrong year, so we took a trip down to the law library to research the old Federal Register. It turned out we were right, and when we explained it to USCIS, they approved the case.
12/2019--We successfully convinced the U.S. consulate in Cairo that the Child Status Protection Act (which has limited power to declare someone a "child" and therefore a dependent of their parents' immigrant visa petition, even after they turn 21) applied to preserve the child status of a 32-year old medically-dependent son of a National Interest Waiver grantee. This one was the culmination of a journey that started way back in 2013 and is, honestly, one of the most incredible outcomes we have seen. The client asked that the following paragraph be put up on the website (complete with pun):
"My name is Mahmoud Bahy Noureldin, senior engineering consultant at Saudi Aramco. Recently I have been granted US immigrant visa (IV), with my wife and younger son, under E21 category; individual with exceptional ability.
Mr. Green’s law company was my agent through a very lengthy and difficult journey but at the end very successful in obtaining the IVs for me and my family. It was a lengthy journey since it had started more than 20 years ago, and difficult because my son 20 years ago was a kid and now he is a young man. During this journey, I used the services of three lawyers and Mr. Sheridan Green was the last and the only successful one to take my case/journey to a happy ending. Mr. Green’s distinct handling of my case, exhibited not only in his in depth study of our case but also the peer-to-peer follow up with me and the family till the receiving of the IVs, is unmatched. Having said that, I do strongly recommend Mr. Green’s law company to handle your immigration case..… “If you really want the GREEN “US Green Card” go ahead and hire Mr. Green."
9/2019--Extraordinary Ability petition (EB-1A immigrant visa petition) approved for IT expert (Enterprise Resource Management software implementation) (after request for evidence on contributions of significance in the field).
8/2019--Affirmative asylum application approved for Iraqi doctor (after successful expedite request).
7/2019--Extraordinary Ability petition (EB-1A immigrant visa petition) approved for IT expert (Enterprise Resource Management software implementation) (after request for evidence on contributions of significance in the field).
7/2019--Extraordinary Ability petition (EB-1A immigrant visa petition) approved for marine compliance expert (no request for evidence).
6/2019--Extraordinary Ability petition (EB-1A immigrant visa petition) approved for marine and arctic logistics expert (no request for evidence, only one publication).
6/2019--Extraordinary Ability petition (EB-1A immigrant visa petition) approved for Capital Project Readiness expert in oil and gas industry (no request for evidence).
4/2019--Extraordinary Ability petition (EB-1A immigrant visa petition) approved for composite materials and failure analysis expert in the oil and gas industry (no request for evidence).
1/2019--Extraordinary Ability petition (EB-1A immigrant visa petition) approved for expert in petrophysics and Nuclear Magnetic Resonance Imaging in the oil and gas industry (no request for evidence).
11/2018--Extraordinary Ability petition (EB-1A immigrant visa petition) approved for pipeline failure analysis expert in the oil and gas industry (no request for evidence).
10/2018--Extraordinary Ability petition (EB-1A immigrant visa petition) approved for deepwater pipeline design engineer.
8/2018--Extraordinary Ability petition (EB-1A immigrant visa petition) approved for Health, Safety, Security and Environment expert in the oil and gas industry.
7/2018--Extraordinary Ability petition (EB-1A immigrant visa petition) approved for financial consultant.
5/2018--Extraordinary Ability petition (EB-1A immigrant visa petition) approved for Oracle Enterprise Resource Planning implementation expert.
2/2018--E-2 renewal approved for Galveston real estate company (no request for evidence).
12/2017--Extraordinary Ability petition (EB-1A immigrant visa petition) approved for business consultant with major accounting firm (no request for evidence).
12/2017--Extraordinary Ability petition (EB-1A immigrant visa petition) approved for global excellence manager of major oil and gas firm (no request for evidence).
11/2017--H-1B approved for Wage Level 1 computer programmer (despite nearly impossible request for evidence).
11/2017--Extraordinary Ability petition (EB-1A immigrant visa petition) approved for trading manager of major oil and gas firm (no request for evidence).
10/2017--Canadian E-2 approved for flood restoration franchise.
8/2017--The Board of Immigration Appeals granted our appeal, remanding the case of a Honduran woman fleeing severe domestic violence. The immigration judge had denied asylum partly on the basis of the existence of a women's shelter near her hometown. The Board noted that the immigration judge had ignored evidence in the record that the shelter was not adequately funded.
8/2017--The Board of Immigration Appeals granted our motion to reopen a 23-year-old removal order for a grandmother with a federal drug trafficking conviction. Now she can apply for a 212(c) waiver and get her green card back.
7/2017--Extraordinary Ability petition (EB-1A immigrant visa petition) approved for Colombian biomedical researcher (no request for evidence).
6/2017--Change of status from L-1B to L-1A (function manager) approved (zero employees supervised in the U.S.).
6/2017--Extraordinary Ability petition (EB-1A immigrant visa petition) approved for Big Data analyst at major oil services firm (no request for evidence).
4/2017--Adjustment of status application approved for Indian family in just over two months. (We don't know how this one happened, but we're taking credit for it!)
3/2017--212(d)(3) non-immigrant waiver approved for Canadian grandmother to be able to visit her grandchildren in the U.S.
3/2017--O-1B Extraordinary Ability in the Arts visa approved for Venezuelan guitarist (two-time Mara de Oro winner).
2/2017--Management Consultant TN visa (NAFTA Professional) approved in Juarez, Mexico.
2/2017--P-1B (non-immigrant visa for a "nationally recognized entertainment group") approved for a Mexican Christian norteno band.
12/2016--Extraordinary Ability petition (EB-1A immigrant visa petition) approved for refinery expert (no request for evidence).
10/2016--Extraordinary Ability petition (EB-1A immigrant visa petition) approved for Supply Chain Management Lead (no request for evidence)
8/2016--National Interest Waiver immigrant visa petition approved for a Supply Chain Management Lead (no request for evidence).
8/2016--We won a published Fifth Circuit case (after getting the Court to reverse itself!). Gomez v. Lynch, ---F.3d---, 2016 WL 4169123 (5th Cir. Aug. 5, 2016).
8/2016--P-1A athlete visa for professional wrestler approved.
7/2016--E-2 investor visa for real estate company approved.
1/2016--EB-1A extraordinary ability immigrant visa petition approved for pulmonologist (no request for evidence)
1/2016--Management consultant TN (NAFTA professional) visa approved in Juarez, Mexico.
11/2015--Writ of mandamus successful after filing lawsuit against USCIS (15 year pending application to remove conditions from investor green card approved).
8/2015--National Interest Waiver (EB-2 immigrant visa petition) approved for industrial engineer.
6/2015--We won a U.S. Supreme Court case! Mata v. Lynch, 135 S. Ct. 2150 (2015).
5/2015--I-526 immigrant visa petition approved (million dollar investment green card).
3/2015--National Interest Waiver approved for electronics engineer.
1/2015--National Interest Waiver approved for Instrumentation and Control engineer.
1/2015--Writ of mandamus successful (USCIS forced to adjudicate 2 year pending National Interest Waiver immigrant visa petition).
12/2014--212(d)(3) non-immigrant waiver approved (drug trafficking).
12/2014--We won a Fifth Circuit case! Mendez-Mendez v. Holder, 13-60293 (5th Cir. 2014).
10/2014--O-1A Extraordinary Ability non-immigrant visa approved for professional wrestler.
9/2014--EB-1A Extraordinary Ability immigrant visa petition approved for professional wrestler.
4/2014--O-1A extraordinary ability non-immigrant visa approved for pulmonologist.
1/2014--Scheduled for oral argument before the Board of Immigration Appeals on issue whether to overturn precedent decision Matter of Tobar-Lobo, 24 I&N Dec. 143 (BIA 2007) (failure to register as a sex offender is a crime involving moral turpitude) (government withdrew charges to avoid precedent).
11/2013--Management consultant TN (NAFTA professional visa) approved in Alberta, Canada.
9/2013--E-2 treaty investor visa approved for Italian import store.
6/2013--J-1 two-year home residency requirement waiver (U.S. Health and Human Services Interested Government Agency category) approved.
