Help !! Missed Oath Ceremony

L

littledeer

Registered Users (C)
This is hard to believe..
:(
I filed the N400 in January, and all went so well and smooth...
My interview was on May 2nd, and it went so well.

I used an experienced immigration attorney, and was waiting for the
N-445, aka Notice of naturalization Ceremony.

Well, yesterday when I got home, as I have done every single day, I
checked my mailbox, and sure enough, there was a letter from my
attorney, and inside my loved N-445, Notice of naturalization
Ceremony.

First thing, I *immediately* checked the Ceremony date: Thursday, May
the 24th 2007.
Uhu ? :eek:
I had a double-take, checked the date and time three times on my
watch, cell phone and pager, and they all showed Thursday, May the
24th 2007.

The letter was late. The attorney's office mailed it on May the 23rd,
the day BEFORE I was supposed to be at the Ceremony ( 2 hours away by
car....)

In another envelope, I also received the "Congratulation, you have
become an American Citizen" letter from the attorney's office.
Somewhat ironic, I must say. :mad:

Has anyone had the same nightmare experience ? What happens next ?
And don't tell me to get an immigration attorney ... I already got
one, and trust me, it is more than enough.
Advice ?
----------------
Application 01-18-07
Received by USCIS on 01-23-07
Return Receipt Letter from immigration dated 01-30-07
Letter for Fingerprinting 01-31-07
Fingerprinting Appointment 02-16-07
Interview Appointment Letter, received 04-25-07
Interview : 05-02-07
Oath: ????
 
I would say schedule an Infopass appointment immediately, take the letter, envelope and explain the situation to them, perhaps they will be sympathetic and will give you a new oath date. Alternatively, it could help to call the help phone number and explain the same. I think in this case time is of the essence before they move forward and consider your application abandoned.

Good luck.
 
Schedule an infopass immediately for today itself, if available go and talk to them. Explain them entire picture.
 
I called my lawyer and I have the impression his
secretary is trying to fix this screw up herself and attempting for
him not to find out (just my feelings from a phone conversation I have
had with her, I could be wrong)
She acts as if this is not a big deal, and I have not idea if it is or
not.
I do not know how fast USCIS considers my file "abandoned" for a no-
show, the first infopass is for June the 6th, and I am at a loss for
what to do.
 
I would agree with infopass.

It is possible that attorney delayed it but also possible that Do was late in sending it. If Do was late in sending it, they hopefully will help.

In my case, during interview, IO found that there was a second A file so my case was not decided on that interview day. I wanted to change my oath from administrative to Judicial so had taken infopass 2 days after interview and on 05/23 . In second infopass, person told me that I am in "Oath to be scheduled" stage. On 5/24 I received the Oath letter for ceremony on June 1. (7 day notice) That letter is dated 5/17 but mailed on 5/23 (same day as my infopass) It is not printed on the colorful thick paper but a normal paper. It seems to be that after infopass, IO realized that letter was not sent to me and printed and sent it to me. So it is possible that DO was the factor in the delay.

Good luck !!
 
littledeer said:
I called my lawyer and I have the impression his
secretary is trying to fix this screw up herself and attempting for
him not to find out (just my feelings from a phone conversation I have
had with her, I could be wrong)
She acts as if this is not a big deal, and I have not idea if it is or
not.
I do not know how fast USCIS considers my file "abandoned" for a no-
show, the first infopass is for June the 6th, and I am at a loss for
what to do.
Click to expand...
Of course it is a big deal. How can it not be? They just created a huge unnecessary problem that YOU have to deal with. There is no doubt you will have to jump though some loops to get this fixed. I guess an infopass appt would be a must, and you'll just have to explain what happened and hope they accept your story.

I am 99.99% sure your lawyer will deny it's his fault. They'll never ever admit that they forgot to mail it on time unless you have a proof. Even then, all they needed to do was a simple phone call before they mailed the oath letter to you, which any decent lawyer would've done after seeing the date of oath.
 
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It sounds like the lawyer mailed it to you the day before the oath. If he didn't also phone you, consider logging *all* of your time that you spend unscrewing this screw-up. Then ask him his hourly bill rate and send him a bill. When you pay for service, you should expect some service.
 
I agree with Flydog!

Which idiot would mail a letter 1 day before the oath? Wow! And I don't believe for one second this whole bologne about "USCIS mailing the N-445 3-4 days before the oath date". Not a chance! I have never heard of them doing that. So, it's definitely your attorney's fault.

Not that I dislike lawyers or anything - this, in my book is a screw up of monolithic proportions! No other way to put it. A naturalization oath ceremony is a big deal (contrary to what some here including your lawyer might think) - it's the ONLY day you wait for - the most important date in the whole N-400 process! Even if there is a 0.00001% chance that the DO mailed the letter 4-5 days before your oath, your lawyer should have had the common sense to pick up the phone and call you! Duh! I would let your lawyer and his assistant get a earful before anything. I know it doesn't fix anything, but it sure as hell is his job to make sure he doesn't screw up the ONLY friggin thing you have paid him to do, and this is get your citizenship papers filed on your behalf on time. There are people here waiting years and months to get their cases adjuducated through the CIS doing it all themselves. You pay a lawyer and then he screws it up. Very nice.

I'm not trying to make you feel bad, it just really irks me when I hear this sort of thing.
 
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Well, here are the dates:
Interview: May 2nd.

Oath ceremony letter from USCIS with date May 8th, probably received
at the attorney's office around the 10th or 11th or May.

Attorney's cover letter sent to me with the "Oath ceremony letter" dated May 15th

Post office stamp on the above: May 23
Post office stamp is CLEAR and easy to read, no mistakes there, they have had the letter at their office for at least a week, ready to go and they mailed it to me the day BEFORE the ceremony, and I received it the next day, May 24th.

Yes, there is no doubt in the dates.
The DO mailed out the oath ceremony letter 6 days after my interview, and I consider that very good.
Then the attorney's office set on it for a looong time.

And yes, I AGREE that no matter if it is a short or long notice, in the year 2007 , for something like that, an email, AND a quick phone call are almost mandatory.

But for this particular Immigration Lawyer, I have had the feeling they were not on top of their game, when a week before my interview, I emailed them with some questions, important stuff, and got NO reply until the day before the interview I had to call them and practically beg them for an answer. Not good.

Now, I just got an email from the guy himself, and he said he spoke with a "Supevisor" at the DO , and my case was "approved" ( whatever that means) and we should hear something concerning a new ceremony date in about a month. ( cross your fingers ! ) Yes, he apologized and took full responsibility about the mix up, and that is good.
What is funny is that he wrote: "Apparently we mailed you the letter late" Apparently ?
What part of "May 23rd 2007" post stamp does he NOT understand ? jeeez...

When I started the N400 deal, I didn't know it was so straightforward, or I would not have spent ~ $1000 on attorney's fees, if I had to do it all over again, I would definitely do it "solo" ;)

Well, I shall let y'all know how it goes... :cool:

BL
 
Very cool!

littledeer said:
...Oath ceremony letter from USCIS with date May 8th, probably received at the attorney's office around the 10th or 11th or May.
.... Post office stamp on the above: May 23The DO mailed out the oath ceremony letter 6 days after my interview, and I consider that very good.
Then the attorney's office set on it for a looong time.

But for this particular Immigration Lawyer, I have had the feeling they were not on top of their game, when a week before my interview, I emailed them with some questions, important stuff, and got NO reply until the day before the interview I had to call them and practically beg them for an answer. Not good.

Now, I just got an email from the guy himself, and he said he spoke with a "Supevisor" at the DO , and my case was "approved" ( whatever that means) and we should hear something concerning a new ceremony date in about a month. ( cross your fingers ! ). What is funny is that he wrote: "Apparently we mailed you the letter late" Apparently ?
What part of "May 23rd 2007" post stamp does he NOT understand ? jeeez...
BL
Click to expand...

I think this email thread should be plated in gold and sealed with a permanent "sticky". Then the subject line should be changed to: "Buyer BEWARE - sleazy good-for-nothing attorneys still suck!" :mad:

I guess my premonitions about your sleazy attorney were true!
 
The lawyer admitted his mistake? That's a first. :eek: So what now? Is he giving some of the fee back? Or is it a convinient case of "let's forget about it"?

What I don't understand....USCIS normally mails the letters to both lawyer and applicant..... Is it not?
 
Well, it sure looks like my DO mails all letters only to the lawyer, and not in copy to the applicant ( remember, "common sense" is not in their dictionary), otherwise I would be an American Citizen, today. Instead, NOT.:(

I have to wait until I get re-scheduled, and hopefully this time the letter will be on time, and after it is all over, we will talk $$ with the attorney.
After all I still owe him a small payment, and sure as heck he will wait until "the fat lady has sung" :D

Keep you posted.....
 
I'd be asking for a big chunk of what he already has back. If he balks, find the phone number for the local bar association.
 
I also went with an Attorney. I got the Oath Letter the same day the attorney got it.

DId you not get an Oath Letter, directly from USCIS ?
 
rjo1 said:
I also went with an Attorney. I got the Oath Letter the same day the attorney got it.

DId you not get an Oath Letter, directly from USCIS ?
Click to expand...

littledeer said:
Well, it sure looks like my DO mails all letters only to the lawyer, and not in copy to the applicant ( remember, "common sense" is not in their dictionary), otherwise I would be an American Citizen, today. Instead, NOT.:(
Click to expand...
Already answered.
 
littledeer:

In what state do you live and in what state is your attorney based? I agree with flydog. I'd ask for all of my money back at the very least and if he refuses, file a complaint with the state bar. The amount is probably too small to file for malpractice, but in California, for example, you can demand fee arbitration, etc. But I'd start with nicely asking for money back, then escalating with "money back, or malpractice suit and complaint to state bar."

Here's the link to the CA state bar for complaints. I'm sure your state has something similar. Just google "statename bar"

http://www.calbar.ca.gov/state/calbar/calbar_generic.jsp?cid=10179
 
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