TOP IMMIGRATION ATTORNEYS
DANIEL B. LUNDY Partner
Klasko Immigration Law Partners LLP
Daniel B. Lundy is a partner with Klasko
Immigration Law Partners LLP, and heads the firm’ s EB-5 Developer / Regional Center and EB-5 Compliance practices. Lundy represents numerous developers and regional centers who seek to raise money through the EB-5 program. He works with various securities lawyers, economists, business plan writers and others to structure deals to be EB-5 compliant. Lundy represents many clients in troubled EB-5 projects, including various matters involving SEC complaints and allegations of fraud or misappropriation, where he helps to preserve the immigration interests of the investors throughout the restructuring of those projects. Lundy has extensive experience litigating immigration cases in the federal courts and is frequently retained to help with RFEs, NOIDs, and appeals of USCIS denials. He received his J. D. from Fordham University School of Law.
WHAT TRENDS ARE YOU SEEING IN THE EB-5 INDUSTRY?
As the Chinese market cools, the flow of new EB-5 projects is slowing somewhat. However, the number of troubled projects continues to grow, both in terms of cases of fraud and cases where projects have been completed but struggled economically or have had challenges in reaching completion. These projects often need to be restructured in a way that preserves the investors’ ability to immigrate under the EB-5 program. USCIS policy continues to evolve, often without warning. The overall level of complexity in EB-5 is rising, and we have been continuously developing new and creative strategies to deal with it.
WHY DID YOU GET INVOLVED IN THE EB-5 INDUSTRY?
I was attracted to the EB-5 field because it is a very small niche within the immigration field, and one that involves a substantial level of complexity and a corresponding opportunity for creative lawyering that really has the ability to help clients achieve their goals. The business side of EB-5 is constantly evolving, and, as a result, so is the practice of law in this field.
BRANDON MEYER Managing Partner Fakhoury Global Immigration
Brandon Meyer is the managing partner of the San Francisco office for Fakhoury Global Immigration. He is a member of the Bars of the State of Connecticut and the District of Columbia. Meyer is also a member of AILA, the Academy of Political Science, the British American Business Council, the Bay Area Mobility Managers and IIUSA, among other professional organizations. He received his
J. D. degree from University of San Diego School of Law, his Masters of Arts in East Asian Studies from George Washington University, and his Bachelor of Arts in Economics from the American University. He is the author of numerous articles on the intersection of economics and politics with immigration law and policy.
WHAT DO YOU THINK THE FUTURE OF THE EB-5 INDUSTRY LOOKS LIKE?
I hope to see increased visa numbers. How that happens( not counting derivatives against the 10,000 vs. increasing the number above 10,000 vs. recapturing years of unused visa numbers) is irrelevant. The program risks a prolonged slump without addressing the visa numbers issue. While TEA rules need updating, concepts such as visa set-asides for " rural areas," " infrastructure " or inventing new concepts such as " urban distressed " designations are not the way forward. These concepts only increase the complexity of an already complex program and shift the " systemic gaming exercise " currently plaguing TEA designation towards projects angling to fit into these artificial distinctions.
WHY DID YOU GET INVOLVED IN THE EB-5 INDUSTRY?
I expanded my EB-5 involvement out of sheer boredom. While I had worked on a handful of EB-5 matters between 1998- 2006, I primarily worked on corporate work visas( H-1B, L-1, PERM). In the days of two successive dotcom booms, most large immigration law firms wanted nothing to do with EB-5. EB-5 was hard. H-1B ' s were easy then, and for every one EB-5, there were probably 1,000 H-1B ' s. My timing was fortuitous as EB-5 began its revival around the same time that the corporate market imploded. I was well-placed to leverage these shifting market dynamics.
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