Immigration

For more than three decades, Robinson+Cole's Immigration Group has guided employers through the tangle of red tape to secure temporary and permanent visas for their global workforce. Our lawyers, experienced in all aspects of immigration law, represent Fortune 100 and Global 500 companies, as well as small businesses, new ventures, and nonprofit organizations, including hospitals and universities. The members of our group prepare petitions and applications for immigrant and nonimmigrant visas, interact on a regular basis with the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), the Department of Labor (DOL), the State Department, and various U.S. embassies and consulates around the world, and provide advice concerning compliance with IRCA/I-9 Forms and export control issues. With the resources of a full-service law firm, our lawyers are also able to provide guidance to our clients in other areas related to their global workforces, including employment law, and estate and tax planning.

Client service is our top priority. We are committed to a business model that provides clients with the following:

  • unparalleled responsiveness
  • direct access to lawyers
  • strategic planning advice consistent with business needs
  • a cutting-edge case management tracking system
  • secure online access to case status information
  • timely updates on relevant developments
    • Experience
      • Provided immigration training to human resources professionals, recruiters, executives and managers, business owners, and in-house counsel for a variety of clients and business organizations, including Fortune 100 and Global 500 companies, and one of the world's largest chemical and pharmaceutical companies.

      • Served as special counsel under the direction of the New Jersey Attorney General's office to the New Jersey Meadowlands Commission (formerly known as the Hackensack Meadowlands Development Commission), an agency of the State of New Jersey which owns, or will acquire, an area in excess of 1,000 acres.

      • Serving as Preferred Immigration Counsel for all business units of United Technologies Corporation operating in the United States.
      • Enabled biotechnology companies, educational institutions, and hospitals in the retention of valuable key scientists, researchers, chemists, professors, and physicians by obtaining both temporary and permanent immigration status.
      • Assisted Global 500 company in maintaining the work authorization of foreign national employees of a company targeted to be acquired.
      • Representation of a New York City-based global management consulting firm to secure an approved L-1 Blanket petition. Converted the majority of its H-1B workforce to L-1B status at U.S. Consulates in India and China. This has allowed for more flexibility regarding staffing, compensation, and client service and no further concerns about H-1B dependency.
      • Representation of a Connecticut-based global technology company concerning one of its employees who was denied a pending PERM application. The U.S. Department of Labor indicated that the company did not list all of its requirements on the PERM application even though the requirements were listed in the ad and that this was prejudicial to U.S. workers. Robinson & Cole refiled the PERM application and successfully argued that the requirements were in fact listed on the application as an alternative and that this was appropriate. The case was reopened relatively quickly, and the employee received her permanent resident status.

      • Representation of a Danish-owned publicly traded company to bring Danish nationals to the U.S. as managers and specialized knowledge personnel. Robinson & Cole filed documentation to register the company with the U.S. Embassy in Copenhagen as an E-2 Trader Investor. Also filed substantial documentation with the E-2 application regarding the company's real estate leases, corporate acquisitions, current employees and their immigration status, and the company's initial investment in the U.S.

      • Obtained waivers of the two-year home residency requirement through various state and CONRAD 30 programs for physicians, as well as other professionals in J-1 status through mechanisms such as the Interested Government Agency Waiver.
      • Counseled a Fortune 100 company with regard to DOL and USCIS requirements during the layoff of foreign national IT workers.
      • Counseled one of the 30 largest financial institutions in the United States with regard to post-acquisition I-9 compliance issues and provided guidance for self-audit.
      • Provided creative solutions in a slow economy for the retention of valued foreign national employees nearing the end of their authorized stays.
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    • News
      • August 15, 2017

        Fifty-Nine Robinson+Cole Lawyers Listed in The Best Lawyers in America© 2018

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          Fifty-Nine Robinson+Cole Lawyers Listed in The Best Lawyers in America© 2018

          Fifty-nine Robinson+Cole lawyers were selected by their peers for inclusion in The Best Lawyers in America© 2018 (Copyright 2017 by Woodward/White, Inc., of Aiken, SC). Of the 59 lawyers from across the firm’s practice groups and offices named to the list, 49 are from Connecticut. The firm continues to have the highest number of recognized lawyers in the state.

          Additionally, the following six lawyers were named the Best Lawyers® 2018 “Lawyer of the Year” in Hartford, Connecticut, in the noted practice areas: Dennis C. Cavanaugh in Litigation – Construction; Stephen E. Goldman in Insurance Law; Stuart D. Rosen in Litigation – Banking and Finance; Edward J. Samorajczyk Jr. in Securities / Capital Markets Law; William T. Sellay in Mergers and Acquisitions Law; and Theodore J. Tucci in Health Care Law.

          See a complete listing of all Robinson+Cole's ranked lawyers in the press release.

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      • May 5, 2017

        Immigration Group Lawyers Publish Article for Mobility Magazine

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          Immigration Group Lawyers Publish Article for Mobility Magazine

          Immigration Group lawyers Joshua S. Mirer and Jennifer L. Shanley penned the article "Hiring a Foreign National Worker: What U.S. Employers Need to Know," published in the May 2017 issue of Mobility Magazine. The topics they cover in the article include the process for foreign nationals entering the U.S. for business activities, assessing whether the foreign national qualifies for a particular work-authorized category, the timing and availability of the most widely used work-authorized categories for foreign nationals, what to do when a nonimmigrant petition is approved, and what happens after the foreign national enters the U.S. in valid nonimmigrant status. To find out more, click here to read the article.

      • August 15, 2016

        Robinson+Cole Receives Top Listing in Connecticut Lawyer Count in The Best Lawyers in America® 2017

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          Robinson+Cole Receives Top Listing in Connecticut Lawyer Count in The Best Lawyers in America® 2017

          Robinson+Cole was again recognized as having the highest number of Connecticut lawyers selected by their peers for inclusion in The Best Lawyers in America© 2017 (Copyright 2016 by Woodward/White, Inc., of Aiken, SC). Across the firm’s practice groups and offices, 57 lawyers were named to this year’s list, including 47 in Connecticut.

          Additionally, the following four lawyers were named the Best Lawyers® 2017 “Lawyer of the Year” in Hartford, Connecticut, in the noted practice areas: Dennis C. Cavanaugh in Construction Law; Judith M. Keppelman  in Litigation – Trusts and Estates; Linda L. Morkan in Appellate Practice; and Edward J. Samorajczyk Jr. in Corporate Law.

          See a complete listing of all Robinson+Cole's ranked lawyers in the news release.

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      • August 18, 2015

        Robinson+Cole Receives Top Listing in Connecticut Lawyer Count in The Best Lawyers in America® 2016

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          Robinson+Cole Receives Top Listing in Connecticut Lawyer Count in The Best Lawyers in America® 2016

          Robinson+Cole was again recognized as having the highest number of Connecticut lawyers selected by their peers for inclusion in The Best Lawyers in America© 2016 (Copyright 2015 by Woodward/White, Inc., of Aiken, SC). Across the firm’s practice groups and offices, 55 lawyers were named to this year’s list, including 45 in Connecticut.

          Additionally, the following seven lawyers were named the Best Lawyers® 2016 “Lawyer of the Year” in Hartford, Connecticut, in the noted practice areas: Bruce B. Barth in Employee Benefits (ERISA) Law; Dennis C. Cavanaugh in Litigation – Construction; Stephen E. Goldman in Insurance Law; Joey Lee Miranda in Environmental Law; Craig A. Raabe in Litigation – Intellectual Property; Edward J. Samorajczyk, Jr., in Securities / Capital Markets Law; and William T. Sellay in Mergers and Acquisitions Law. Peter V. Lacouture was named the Best Lawyers® 2016 “Lawyer of the Year” in Energy Law in Providence, Rhode Island.

          See a complete listing of all Robinson+Cole's ranked lawyers in the news release.

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      • April 16, 2015

        Megan Naughton Joins Statewide Legal Services Board of Directors

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          Megan Naughton Joins Statewide Legal Services Board of Directors

          Megan R. Naughton, co-chair of Robinson+Cole’s Immigration Group, has joined Connecticut’s Statewide Legal Services (SLS) Board of Directors. SLS empowers low-income people in Connecticut to obtain justice by providing tools and information to address their civil legal needs. The nonprofit legal aid advice and referral center, available by phone to low-income people throughout Connecticut, helps clients solve their legal problems for free. Read more in the news release.

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      • June 13, 2014

        Hartford Lawyers Promote AILA Immigration Contest

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          Hartford Lawyers Promote AILA Immigration Contest

          In local sites around the country, the American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA) sponsored the 17 Annual Celebrate America Fifth Grade Creative Writing Contest, whose 2014 theme was "Why I Am Glad America Is a Nation of Immigrants." The contest encourages fifth graders to submit written works (essays, poems, and stories) that reflect the theme. Serving as contest coordinator in Connecticut, immigration lawyer Lauren M. Sigg organized the efforts of AILA members to give presentations in several Connecticut fifth grade classrooms, coordinated contest submissions across the state, and organized the evaluations of the submissions. At Duffy Elementary in West Hartford, immigration lawyer Megan R. Naughton discussed the role that immigration has played in shaping our society. Charlie Krajc, a student from Duffy, won Connecticut's first place prize. His essay underscored the hope and bravery of immigrants coming to the United States. Although Charlie did not win the national contest, he and the other Connecticut finalists received gift certificates and were invited to attend and participate in a naturalization ceremony in Hartford on June 6, 2014.

          Please click here to view the West Hartford News article on the contest.

           

      • November 20, 2013

        R&C Lawyers Write Article for Connecticut Law Tribune

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          R&C Lawyers Write Article for Connecticut Law Tribune

          Immigration lawyers Lauren M. Sigg and Megan R. Naughton authored the article "Maintaining a Green Card While Working Abroad," published by the Connecticut Law Tribune on October 21, 2013. The article focuses on why permanent residents temporarily leaving the country need to plan ahead and specifically covers the areas of abandoning a green card, keeping a green card, and dealing with family concerns. Please click here to view the article.
      • October 21, 2013

        Super Lawyers® Names 61 Robinson & Cole Attorneys to 2013 List

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          Super Lawyers® Names 61 Robinson & Cole Attorneys to 2013 List

          A total of 61 Robinson & Cole attorneys were named Super Lawyers® in the states of Connecticut, Massachusetts, New York, and Florida for 2013. The Super Lawyers® designation is based on regional balloting by attorneys, third-party research, and a peer review process encompassing myriad practice areas.

          In addition, 19 attorneys at the firm were recognized as "Rising Stars." Read an explanation of the Super Lawyers methodology here.

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      • August 27, 2013

        Robinson & Cole Lawyers Provide Commentary in Law360

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          Robinson & Cole Lawyers Provide Commentary in Law360

          Five Robinson & Cole lawyers were featured in the Law360 Q&A series. Finance and bankruptcy lawyer Michael R. Enright, white-collar defense and corporate compliance lawyer Edward J. Heath, immigration lawyer Megan R. Naughton, insurance lawyer Gregory P. Varga, and appellate lawyer Jeffrey J. White shared their insights on the most challenging cases they’ve tackled, important issues or legal developments affecting their practice, lessons they learned as they embarked on their legal careers, and more. Read their Q&A interviews here.
      • April 10, 2013

        Megan Naughton Quoted in the Boston Globe

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          Megan Naughton Quoted in the Boston Globe

          The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced on April 5, 2013, that it received a sufficient number of H-1B petitions to reach the statutory cap for fiscal year (FY) 2014. Robinson & Cole's Immigration Practice Group responded quickly to the news by sending out a legal update highlighting all the major points of this announcement. As a result of the update's early release, the Boston Globe contacted immigration lawyer Megan R. Naughton for an article on the high-tech visa quota, published on April 6, 2013. Ms. Naughton spoke to the Globe about why there was an increase in demand for H-1B petitions this year. To view the article, click here.
      • December 13, 2012

        Robinson & Cole Attorneys Earn Additional Honors for Pro Bono Work

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          Robinson & Cole Attorneys Earn Additional Honors for Pro Bono Work

          The pro bono efforts of Robinson & Cole attorneys have earned the attention and recognition of multiple agencies over the course of 2012. In the last few months, five new awards were given to honor the commitment of the firm's lawyers to pro bono work.

          The Connecticut Veterans Legal Center presented the firm with its 2012 Veterans Justice Award and named William J. Egan a Volunteer Hero; the U.S. District Court for the District of Connecticut gave Jeffrey J. White and Craig A. Raabe its 2012 Pro Bono Award on October 19; Connecticut Legal Services selected April F. Condon as one of its three 2012 honorees for her extensive pro bono work and honored her at its annual meeting on October 23; and the Pro Bono Partnership selected Britt-Marie K. Cole-Johnson as one of its five Volunteers of the Year from a pool of almost 1,000 attorneys in the tri-state area.
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      • October 22, 2012

        Super Lawyers® Names 49 Robinson & Cole Attorneys to 2012 List and Recognizes 26 as Rising Stars

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          Super Lawyers® Names 49 Robinson & Cole Attorneys to 2012 List and Recognizes 26 as Rising Stars

          A total of 49 Robinson & Cole attorneys were named Super Lawyers® in the states of Connecticut, Massachusetts, and Rhode Island for 2012. The Super Lawyers® designation is based on regional balloting by attorneys, third-party research, and a peer review process encompassing myriad practice areas.

          In addition, 26 attorneys at the firm were recognized as "Rising Stars." Read an explanation of the Super Lawyers methodology here.

          Recognized attorneys and their areas of practice can be read in the full press release.

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      • April 5, 2010

        Robinson & Cole Attorney Elected to Board of Directors of the Village for Families & Children, Inc.

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          Robinson & Cole Attorney Elected to Board of Directors of the Village for Families & Children, Inc.

          Immigration partner Joshua S. Mirer has been elected to the Board of Directors of the Village for Families & Children, Inc. In his newly elected capacity, Mr. Mirer contributes leadership support to further the agency’s three core service areas: placement and permanency (adoption, foster care, and family preservation), treatment, and family and community support. To read the press release, click here.
      • March 5, 2010

        Robinson & Cole Immigration Attorneys Honored by Center for Children’s Advocacy

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          Robinson & Cole Immigration Attorneys Honored by Center for Children’s Advocacy

          Immigration attorneys Joshua S. Mirer, Megan R. Naughton, and Natasha A. Sharubina will receive the Center for Children's (CCA) Advocacy's Child Advocate Award this year for their work with the CCA since 2002 in resolving immigration cases, assisting the CCA to advocate for appropriate policies with the Department of Children and Families, and for providing legal research and training on immigration issues affecting juveniles. They will receive the award during an event in April.
      • November 12, 2008

        Robinson & Cole Announces New Partners

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          Robinson & Cole Announces New Partners

          Robinson & Cole is pleased to announce 3 new Partners in their Hartford, CT office: Wystan M. Ackerman of the Insurance and Reinsurance Practice Group, Michael J. Kolosky of the Business Litigation Practice Group, and Joshua S. Mirer of the Immigration Practice Group. Click here to view group photo.

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