Uncategorized – Sound Immigration

5 reasons to sue an I-864 sponsor who “doesn’t have any money”

Today, I wanted to talk about something that comes up pretty often in my consultations: what should you do if your Affidavit of Support sponsor/defendant doesn't have any money? Should you still start a lawsuit against them to try and…

What would a government shutdown mean for immigration cases and immigration applications?

As negotiations in Congress stall, it appears very likely that there will be a federal government shutdown. What would a shut down mean for immigration cases? Here is a summary of the best information we have available. U.S. Citizenship and…

Will Donald Trump make it harder to get my visa?

Many thousands of people are in the middle of the visa process. That includes many of our clients. Others are preparing to apply for a visa. How could Donald Trump’s presidency impact the process for you? I will answer that…

Can President Trump cancel my DACA?

When Donald Trump takes office in January, what will this mean if you have DACA? The bottom line is this: it could be very bad. Update (Jan. 26, 2017): Trump is reviewing an Executive Order that will end DACA. Read…

Can President Trump take away my greencard?

If are an immigrant to the United States, what does Donald Trump's victory mean for you? Specifically, what does a Trump win mean if you have a greencard. What type of "greencard" do you have? "Greencard" is not actually a…

9 free/cheap pieces of tech to make your lawyer life better

September 8, 2016
Greg McLawsen
Business of law, For lawyers, Uncategorized
0 Comments

Thanks to the folks at the Kittitas County Bar Association for having me out to speak today. We'll be covering a potpourri of topics relating to the use of technology in law firms. Below it a list of nine unrelated tech…

Webinar: Adjustment of Status from ESTA/VWP (May 24, 2016 – noon)

When: Tuesday, May 24, 2016 from 12:00 PM to 12:30 PM (PDT). If a foreign national comes to the U.S. on ESTA/VWP, is she elligible to adjust status to permanent resident? Learn the ropes in this free 30-minute webinar. CLE…

WSBA Sections Workgroup feedback

This page has been created to serve as a clearinghouse of written input sent to the WSBA Sections Policy Workgroup. The views expressed here are my own as an WSBA member, or those of the authors of the various documents…

What goes into an I-864 Affidavit of Support lawsuit complaint?
I’ve been representing clients in lawsuits to enforce the USCIS Form I-864, Affidavit of Support for about a decade at this point. Over that time, I’ve made a lot of changes to the template that we use for federal lawsuit complaints. (A complaint is the initial case document that sets forth the plaintiff’s legal claim…
What is a joint sponsor’s liability under the Form I-864, Affidavit of Support?
A joint sponsor (also called co-sponsor) has the same liability under an Affidavit of Support as the primary sponsor. By signing the USCIS Form I-864, the joint sponsor agrees to “joint and several” liability on the contract. The sponsored immigrant can sue the joint sponsor for financial support in state or federal court. A joint…
Can you enforce the Form I-864 Affidavit of Support in a divorce case?
Yes – in most states the USCIS Form I-864, Affidavit of Support can be enforced in a divorce case. A family law court has the authority to enforce the I-864 either (1) as a breach of contract claim or (2) through spousal maintenance (also called alimony). But as discussed below, divorce court is not necessarily…
USCIS Form I-864 enforcement in divorce court – another cautionary tale (Marriage of Bychina)
It is a theme that I have written about many times on this blog and elsewhere. Yes, the Affidavit of Support can theoretically be enforced in family law proceedings. But in practice, beneficiaries frequently encounter problems in that forum. Here is another example. Marriage of Bychina was a family law case in Illinois. See No.…
How do you calculate damages under the I-864, Affidavit of Support
In an important ruling for one of our I-864 enforcement clients, a Court ruled today that damages under the USCIS Form I-864, Affidavit of Support are determined based on taxable income. In Flores v. Flores, the Western District of Washington ruled that the term “income” is governed by the definition contained at 8 C.F.R. §…
How do you settle a claim under the USCIS Form I-864, Affidavit of Support?
As I explain elsewhere on this blog, almost all claims under the USCIS Form I-864, Affidavit of Support result in settlement. To get an idea of how long that process takes, read this post. Having settled many of these claims, here is an overview of how we generally approach settlement. What goes into an Affidavit…
Can you enforce the Form I-864 Affidavit of Support with a preliminary injunction?
Non-citizens needing to enforce the USCIS Form I-864, Affidavit of Support are usually in serious need of help. To have a claim under the Affidavit, their income needs to be below 125 percent of the poverty line. That’s about $1,400 per month for a household of one. But a lawsuit can take months or even…
What affirmative defenses are available to Form I-864 sponsors? None.
The Eleventh Circuit has held that the common law defenses of unclean hands, anticipatory breach, and equitable estoppel are unavailable to a sponsor who has signed a USCIS Form I-864, Affidavit of Support. Blevich v. Thomas, 17 F.4th 1048 (11th Cir. 2021). Belevich joins a growing line of cases that stand for the proposition that…
The federal right to immigration “alimony” under the Form I-864, Affidavit of Support
A version of this article first appeared in the Side Bar journal for the Litigation Section of the Federal Bar Association (Spring 2021). If you are like most federal litigators – this author included – you would never enter divorce court unless your name was on the case caption. The vitriol, the sabotage, the meanness.…
How long does the I-864 support last?
A sponsor's obligation under the Form I-864 lasts indefinitely. It terminates only upon one of five Terminating Events, including when the green card holder has 40 quarters of work or becomes a U.S. citizen. It *does not* terminate automatically after ten years, even though lawyers mistakenly