Immigration Lawyers:Referrals

[Missingh]

Hello,

I have been reviewing this board for about a month or so and I have decided that due to my complicated circumstances I am going to need an attorney to deal with my immigration process.

My question is this.

I am a Canadian citizen currently still living in Canada engaged to a US citizen. Do I have to get a lawyer in Canada or does my husband have to get a lawyer in NY?

Does anyone have any referrals to a good US immigration lawyer in the Queens, NY area or in Toronto, Canada?

What can I expect the cost to be for a lawyer? With my situation. I use to live and work illegally in the US and most likely will need a waiver.

Thanks for your help
Everyone on this board seems to be so helpful.
Hopefully down the road I will be able to help some of you with my future experiences.

Thanks

[waivering]

I don't know of any lawyers who are experienced enough to deal with waivers. Infact unfortunately this is a gray area when it comes to lawyers. But there is a web site out there that deals specifically with waivers that you may want to visit. There are many approvals on this site of people who have done it themselves without a lawyer. They will help you whenever necessary. www.immigrate2us.net

[Jane Green]

Hello,
I don’t know about Canadian law and lawyers, but here is information about The American Immigration Lawyers Association referral service that you, or your husband, or somebody else on this forum might find helpful:

AILA can help you find an immigration attorney in your area through our Immigration Lawyer Referral Service (ILRS). You will be charged no more than $100 for an initial half-hour consultation. All lawyers participating in the service are licensed to practice law in a state or territory of the United States and are currently a member in good standing of a State Bar Association.
For an attorney referral, please call 1-800-954-0254 to speak with a representative or send an e-mail to ilrs@aila.org. In the e-mail, please provide your name, location and what your need is for an immigration lawyer.
If you contact us by phone, the representative will ask you for:
• Your name
• The city and state where you would like to find a lawyer
• Your phone number
• Your specific needs for an attorney (e.g., a lawyer specializing in asylum)
Our representative will provide you with the name, phone number and location of one lawyer that should be able to meet your needs. If you contact that lawyer and he or she is unable to help you, you may call back to be referred to another lawyer.
After we provide you with a referral, we will contact the lawyer that was referred and notify him or her that a referral has been made. The service representative will provide the lawyer with your first and last name, your location (city and state), and information on your needs. No other information will be given.
When you contact the lawyer, it is very important to mention that you received his or her name through AILA's Immigration Lawyer Referral Service.
Please note: AILA's Immigration Lawyer Referral Service does not provide legal advice. The Service will only refer you to a lawyer that specializes in your area of need in your geographic area.

here is a link: http://www.aila.org/contentViewer.aspx?bc=16,4794

[augustasylee]

Did you overstay your US visa? Were u a Canadian at the time? I don't know that Canadians need a visa to come to the us but I know they need a work permit
Does anyone ie USCIS have in their records that you overstayed your visa?
If not you should not have a problem





What can I expect the cost to be for a lawyer? With my situation. I use to live and work illegally in the US and most likely will need a waiver.

Thanks for your help
Everyone on this board seems to be so helpful.
Hopefully down the road I will be able to help some of you with my future experiences.

Thanks[/QUOTE]

[boiledlettuce]

Garganigo, Goldsmith and Weiss in Manhattan handles immigration cases for a number of NYcompanies, including mine. Individuals may find them expensive (I don't know what their fees are as the company pays for me). They helped me with my TN (ie, "Free Trade" visa) application when my H1 expired, at which time they also enlisted the support of a lawyer in Toronto. Don't recall the Canadian lawyers name, and frankly there wasn't great coordination between the two offices but it all worked out in the end.-