IMMIGRATION LAW

Title: Founder/immigration attorney

Birthplace: Portsmouth

Education: Bachelor’s degree, Old Dominion University; law degree, Seton Hall University School of Law

Spouse: John Gardner, my law partner and firm co-founder

Children: Three daughters: Mia, 16; Sami, 13; and Rae, 8.

Hobbies or pastimes: Traveling, cooking, challenging myself every couple of years to do something crazy (to me), like a triathlon, officiating a wedding, walking on hot coals, etc.

Fan of: I am a huge fan of Girls on the Run, a local nonprofit, which teaches girls in grades 3-8 how to handle social pressure, life skills and strategies, while creatively integrating running.

Recently read book: “The Coaching Habit” by Michael Bungay Stanier

Career mentors: Jim Tom Haynes in Washington, D.C., and my partner and husband, John Gardner. He’s my life coach!

How did your background contribute to your decision to become an immigration lawyer? My parents are Filipino immigrants, and I grew up in an international grocery store, so it was a great fit. It definitely helps to have that background to be able to relate to my clients.

How has legal immigration changed during the past two years? I hate complaining, but it’s tougher to get routine cases timely approved for our clients. Evidence that was acceptable a couple of years ago for a startup business here in the U.S., for example, is no longer acceptable. We are seeing more requests for evidence, which puts a financial strain on business owners hiring foreign nationals. I have colleagues suing in federal court and winning for USCIS [U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services] denials. That’s bad for business and the economy and needlessly clogs up our courts.

Immigration Law list

Hadeel Abouhasira
Williams Mullen
Richmond

D. Earl Baggett
Williams Mullen
Richmond

William Benos
Williams Mullen
Richmond

Lakshmi Challa
Challa Law Group PLC
Glen Allen

Mahalakshmi Challa
Challa Law Offices PLC
Glen Allen

Fabienne Chatain
Elliot and Chatain PLLC
Silver Spring, Maryland

Debra J.C. Dowd
Dowd & Co. PC
Richmond

Anna Ernest
Ernest Law Group
Virginia Beach

John Gardner
Gardner & Mendoza PC
Virginia Beach

David Gluckman
McCandlish Holton PC
Richmond

Naureen Hyder
Hyder Immigration Law
Richmond

Lisa Johnson-Firth
Immigrants First PLLC
Manassas

Nosuk Kim
Cowardin, Kim & Riddle PLC
Newport News

Helen L. Konrad
McCandlish Holton PC
Richmond

Anne C. Lahren
Pender & Coward PC
Virginia Beach

Nancy M. Lawrence
Odin, Feldman & Pittleman PC
Reston

Crystal Malik
McCandlish Holton PC
Richmond

Irina Manelis
Manelis Law PLLC
Glen Allen

Radlyn Mendoza
Gardner & Mendoza PC
Virginia Beach

Mara Mijal
Serratelli Mijal PLLC
Virginia Beach

Anthony H. Monioudis
Anthony H. Monioudis, Esq. PLC
Danville

Jonathan Moore
McCandlish Holton PC
Richmond

Lysandra Pachuta
Henson Pachuta & Kammerman PLLC
Fairfax

Christine Poarch
Poarch Law Firm
Salem

Andrea Rahal
Rahal Immigration Law PLC
Richmond

Mark Rhoads
McCandlish Holton PC
Richmond

Arthur Serratelli
Serratelli Mijal PLLC
Virginia Beach

Satnam Singh
Satnam Singh, Attorney at Law
Norfolk

Jennifer Grace Smyrnos
Grace Immigration PLLC
Roanoke

Jacquelyn E. Stone
McGuireWoods LLP
Richmond

Daniel Sullivan
Johnson, Rosen & O’Keeffe
Roanoke

Emily Sumner
Sumner Immigration Law
Richmond

Soulmaz Taghavi
Novo Taghavi LTD
Richmond

Ralph Tener
McCandlish Lillard
Fairfax

Rachel L.D. Thompson
Poarch Law
Salem

Charles Tievsky
Tievsky Immigration Law
Reston

Hugo Valverde
Valverde Law PLLC
Virginia Beach

James Wood
Willcox Savage PC
Norfolk

Kristin A. Zech
Berenzweig Leonard LLP
McLean