unitednations said:They do not need to pay anything except your salary. If you have to renew EAD/AP then you can pay that yourself.
The only thing they have to supply if requested by USCIS is a letter which specifies that they are offering you a permanent position, what the position is, salary and job duties.
It is very similar to the letter you would have given to the port of entry officers when you used TN. The only difference in the letter would be that TN has to say the job is temporary and is for one year. The letter you need for ac21 can't say it is temporary.
unitednations said:Many people on these boards are given the advice to never work on EAD, especially if 140 hasn't been approved. The reason for this is that if the 140 should get denied then they would have to leave the country or try to pursue a h-1. Since h-1 is reaching the cap fairly early this is generally not an option for most people.
Your case is different because if you did use EAD and 140 got denied/withdrawan you could flip to TN immediately. The only unknown is would uscis at port of entry deny TN if they knew that you had filed for an immigrant application before. I don't think they would but it is better to ask a lawyer this.
If your new employer doesn't have an issue with putting you on an h-1 then I would suggest to go for it. Keep in mind that this will notify uscis that you have changed employers. Since USCIS will know that you have changed employers you should discuss with lawyer if you should invoke ac21 immediately with new employer or wait for 140 approval. Correct me if I am wrong but since you are a schedule a occupation you do not need to file labor certification, correct.
If you don't need a labor certification and your new employer is willing then they could file a new 140/485 for you if something happens to the first employer.
unitednations said:You can do it yourself or get another lawyer.
Your lawyer is a real knucklehead isn't she? Tell her that the law doesn't specify 140 approval only 485 outstanding for more than 6 months. She isn't breaking any professional standards by informing uscis of ac21.
If you haven't been able to find the law then let me know and I will research and post it here.