I’ve developed a new pet peeve.  Lately, when I do consultations and ask people what they were convicted of, they tell me they were convicted of a “felony” or “misdemeanor.”  Felony and misdemeanor are classifications of crimes.  Telling an immigration lawyer that you were convicted of a felony or misdemeanor does not help an immigration attorney to figure out the immigration consequence of your conviction.  In order for an immigration attorney to determine the immigration consequence of a conviction, the immigration lawyer needs to know the actual crime that the person received a conviction for.  Grounds of removability and inadmissibility in immigration law are based upon convictions.  Sometimes whether or not someone was convicted of a misdemeanor or felony will be a factor in determining whether or not someone’s criminal history will cause them an immigration problem.  However, an immigration lawyer really needs to know what the conviction was for to determine if a conviction will cause an immigration problem.

Last week, two people decided that they wanted to meet me for a consultation and went to my office without an appointment.  Unfortunately, I decided to work from home and I wasn’t in my office.  If you wish to meet with me for a consultation, please call for an appointment.  I do not like to meet with walk-ins.

I would not advise going to any attorney’s office without an appointment.  The lawyer could be in court or with other clients.  You have no reason to believe that you will be able to see an attorney, if you go to their office without an appointment.

Immigration Court and the Board of Immigration Appeals (“BIA”) are part of the Executive Office for Immigration Review (“EOIR”).  I often get phone calls from people who do not know the status of their immigration case.  EOIR has an 800# that can be used to check on the status of cases for individuals who are facing deportation.  If you are in removal proceedings or have been in removal proceedings, then your information should be available on the 800#.  The # is 1-800-898-7180.   When you call, you will need to have your alien number.  The 800 # is automated.  If you follow the instructions, you can find out the following information: (1) the next hearing date; (2) if there has been a decision by the immigration judge; (3) if there has been an appeal to the BIA; and (4) if there have been any decisions by the BIA.  Also, if you are seeking asylum, the 800# will let you know how many days have expired on your asylum clock.