On November 29, 2018, New Jersey Attorney General Gurbir Grewal drew a proverbial line in the sand by issuing a new directive that clearly demarcates criminal law enforcement from federal civil law compliance. Under Directive 2018-6, which supersedes Attorney General...
Experience, Accessibility And Excellence For Over 25 Years
Year: 2018
DWI Convictions May Bar Citizenship and Cancellation of Removal
In yet another ominous sign of the erosion of judicial independence, Acting Attorney General Matthew Whitaker recently certified a case to himself that may have a significant impact on foreign nationals charged with Drunk Driving or Driving Under The Influence. The...
New Policy for I-751 Green Card Interviews
USCIS has issued a new policy memorandum that provides guidance to USCIS officers on waiving interviews for I-751 cases. Under the Immigration and Marriage Fraud Amendments of 1986, immigrants who have been married for less than two years to their petitioning spouse...
New Jersey Shoplifting Theft Offense Held Not To Be Deportable
Late last month, attorneys in New Jersey were pleasantly surprised to learn of a one-year-old immigration court decision that directly implicates many issues currently impacting foreign nationals charged with disorderly persons offenses in our state. Although...
No More Self-Scheduling of Infopass Appointments in New Jersey
Effective November 26, 2018, USCIS is no longer accepting walk-in requests or scheduling InfoPass appointments for New Jersey. As we wrote in earlier blog, this is all part of a national initiative to transition to the new Information Services Modernization Program....
Even If Divorced, K-1 Adjustment Applicants Still Required To Submit I-864 Affidavit
In recent months, many of the more notable immigration developments have concerned the public charge ground of inadmissibility. The first rumblings occurred when the Department of State began implementing new guidelines vitiating the presumptive weight of an...
False Claims to US Citizenship To Get Private Job Must Be Proven on I-9 Form
The Ninth Circuit recently issued a precedential case that is instructive, and potentially helpful, to individuals accused of making false claims to US citizenship. In Diaz-Jimenez v. Sessions, No. 15-73603 (9th Cir. 2018), the court confirmed that obtaining private...
Denied U Visa Applicants and Battered Spouses May Be Placed Into Immigration Court
Earlier last month, we wrote about USCIS implementing the new Notice to Appear Policy Memorandum released on June 28 of this year. According to a bulletin released late last week, the second phase of expansion is scheduled to take place November 19, 2018. On and after...
Is the End of INFOPASS? USCIS To Discontinue Self-Scheduling
Just last week, USCIS announced that it will be expanding its Information Services Modernization Program to several major district offices. During the first quarter of next year (2019), it is expected that Newark will be among the first batch, with eventually all...
Divorce Prior to Oath Ceremony Can Result in Denial of 319 Citizenship Application
USCIS recently clarified that lawful permanent residents applying to naturalize on the basis of marriage to a US Citizen must not only demonstrate "living in marital union" with their spouse three years immediately prior to filing, but also that termination of the...