Immigration Law Firm Serving Joliet, IL

Family petitions account for a large share of immigration filings from Will County. Our firm represents petitioners and beneficiaries through petitions, consular processing or adjustments of status, and any waivers the case requires.

Common family-based immigration matters include:

• Immediate relative petitions for spouses, parents, and unmarried children under 21
• Family preference petitions (F1 through F4) subject to annual limits and Visa Bulletin waiting times
• Fiancé(e) visas and the adjustment that follows marriage
• Conditional resident status and the petition to remove conditions on residence
• Violence Against Women Act self-petitions
• Special Immigrant Juvenile petitions
• Humanitarian reinstatement and international adoption matters

Will County employers in the fields of logistics, manufacturing, health care, and higher education sponsor foreign nationals across most employment categories. Our firm advises both employers and employees.

Common employment-based immigration matters include:

• H-1B petitions for specialty occupation professionals
• PERM labor certification and EB-2 and EB-3 immigrant petitions
• EB-1 petitions for individuals of extraordinary ability and multinational managers
• National Interest Waivers
• L-1 intracompany transfers, O-1 petitions, and TN status
• Investor and entrepreneur cases, including E-2 and EB-5
• I-9 compliance, internal audits, and response to ICE worksite enforcement

A Notice to Appear issued to a Joliet resident places the case on the Chicago Immigration Court docket. Removal proceedings move on the court’s schedule rather than the respondent’s, and the forms of relief available depend on immigration history, criminal record, and family circumstances. Immigration proceedings carry no right to appointed counsel, and unrepresented respondents appear opposite a government attorney.

Common removal defense matters include:

• Cancellation of removal for permanent residents and for certain non-permanent residents
• Asylum, withholding of removal, and protection under the Convention Against Torture
• Waivers of inadmissibility
• Bond hearings and custody redetermination
• Appeals to the Board of Immigration Appeals and petitions for review in the federal courts of appeals
• Motions to reopen and motions to reconsider
• Expedited removal and defense against reinstatement of a prior order

The firm handles adjustment of status, consular processing, naturalization, and the derivative citizenship questions that arise in mixed-status families.

Common residency and citizenship matters include:

• Adjustment of status to permanent residence
• Consular processing through a U.S. embassy or consulate abroad
• Naturalization applications, including English and civics accommodation requests
• Certificates of citizenship for children who acquired status through a parent
• Denaturalization defense
• Green card renewal and replacement

When an agency delays or denies a case, the remedy is often in federal court. The firm litigates in the Northern District of Illinois and before the Seventh Circuit.

Common appeals and litigation matters include:

• Mandamus actions on unreasonably delayed adjudications
• Administrative Procedure Act challenges to agency action
• Habeas corpus petitions in detention cases
• Petitions for review of Board of Immigration Appeals decisions

Removal proceedings for Joliet and Will County residents are heard at the Chicago Immigration Court, part of the Executive Office for Immigration Review, which handles cases arising in Illinois, Wisconsin, and Indiana. Hearings for respondents who are not in custody take place at 55 East Monroe Street in downtown Chicago. For respondents held in detention, hearings are usually conducted by video from the facility rather than in the courtroom. Neither Joliet nor Will County has its own immigration court, and immigration judges are federal adjudicators rather than county or state judges.

USCIS assigns the Application Support Center and sends the location with the appointment notice, so the applicant does not select it. The two centers nearest Joliet are the Naperville ASC and the Chicago South ASC. Missing a scheduled appointment without requesting a reschedule through a USCIS online account or the Contact Center can result in denial of the underlying application.

Yes, in most employment-based categories, though the requirements differ by category. An EB-2 or EB-3 petition generally requires PERM labor certification, which means the employer must test the U.S. labor market and obtain certification from the Department of Labor before filing with USCIS. Timelines vary considerably depending on category and country of chargeability.

A Notice to Appear initiates removal proceedings and sets a first hearing date before an immigration judge. Failure to appear can result in an order of removal entered in absentia, which is difficult to reopen. Because the available forms of relief depend on facts specific to each case, a review of the notice and the underlying immigration history is the usual first step.

Yes. The firm is bilingual and provides representation in Spanish, which matters in a city where roughly a quarter of residents speak a language other than English at home.