Lawyer recommendation?

[roughlyworried 5]

Hello,

 

thinking of hiring a new lawyer. Has anyone had any experience or worked with Gary Chodorow (writer and owner of lawandborder)?

 

He seems to be pretty experienced, especially with Asia. Just curious if anyone has worked with him or have second hand knowledge of people who have.

 

thanks

[Devarj 45]

Why would you need a lawyer. They cannot speed up the process

[roughlyworried 5]

23 minutes ago, Devarj said:

Why would you need a lawyer. They cannot speed up the process

Because my case isn’t exactly straight forward. Married online within 2 months of meeting online and never in person before marriage, proxy marriage, missing chat records from the beginning of our relationship, I-130 mistakes on the initial filing, and so on. I would prefer to have a knowledgeable person who is detail oriented and will do the necessary research and thinking. Money isn’t an issue. 
 

This lawyer I’m referring to has written a lot of articles, books, and even been quoted by congress. He seems to know his stuff, but wanted firsthand experiences or people’s opinions on their initial impression from his website. Chodorow law offices. I’ve been doing a lot of DD, but any extra knowledge or set of eyes would be appreciated.

 

[Family 3,988]

3 hours ago, roughlyworried said:

set of eyes would be appreciated

Read through his articles and saw his extensive Utah Zoom marriage blog along with the Q &A. His credentials are top notch, he was/is a law professor and his focus is definitely Asia .
Your money will be well spent.

 

 

Edited January 26, 2023 by Family

[Family 3,988]

Please allow me to say that you have done very well up to now and you have an excellent case. Meeting online , and zoom marriage ( even w typo certificate) is a routine occurrence. Unlike most others who barely clock in a handful of days together, you and your spouse have a year! 
So accept my kudos to a job well done so far! 

[TBoneTX 45,259]

An alternative to a lawyer may be a good immigration service.  One such is a VJ partner:

https://www.visajourney.com/partners/platinum-immigration-services/

 

Disclaimer:  I have no conflict of interest in suggesting the above.

[Devarj 45]

13 hours ago, roughlyworried said:

Because my case isn’t exactly straight forward. Married online within 2 months of meeting online and never in person before marriage, proxy marriage, missing chat records from the beginning of our relationship, I-130 mistakes on the initial filing, and so on. I would prefer to have a knowledgeable person who is detail oriented and will do the necessary research and thinking. Money isn’t an issue. 
 

This lawyer I’m referring to has written a lot of articles, books, and even been quoted by congress. He seems to know his stuff, but wanted firsthand experiences or people’s opinions on their initial impression from his website. Chodorow law offices. I’ve been doing a lot of DD, but any extra knowledge or set of eyes would be appreciated.

 

Since price is not an issue, no worries - go for it. I've found that lawyers can only input the data you provide to complete applications. Essentially, you are doing most of the work and they are completing the form(s). Nothing lawyer can do for missing chat records (and other issues) other than craft a short note explaining why missing (again, you tell them; they write what you say). I've helped several folks with applications. I my humble opinion, the key is to have an organized, logical flow of supporting documents of the relationship. Like writing an essay; before you start, create an outline from day one to present and then find the supporting documents to substantiate the events. Provide exactly what they ask for (despite the origin - proxy marriage, notarized documents, translations etc.). Unfortunate on your mistakes on the original filing. Again an explanation letter would work here. I have a friend whos attorney completed the I130 and sent it in unsigned incurring a 6 month delay - had to resubmit. Although comes with high praise check their work before your approval. Best wishes; it will all work out in the end.

[pushbrk 12,870]

18 minutes ago, Devarj said:

Since price is not an issue, no worries - go for it. I've found that lawyers can only input the data you provide to complete applications. Essentially, you are doing most of the work and they are completing the form(s). Nothing lawyer can do for missing chat records (and other issues) other than craft a short note explaining why missing (again, you tell them; they write what you say). I've helped several folks with applications. I my humble opinion, the key is to have an organized, logical flow of supporting documents of the relationship. Like writing an essay; before you start, create an outline from day one to present and then find the supporting documents to substantiate the events. Provide exactly what they ask for (despite the origin - proxy marriage, notarized documents, translations etc.). Unfortunate on your mistakes on the original filing. Again an explanation letter would work here. I have a friend whos attorney completed the I130 and sent it in unsigned incurring a 6 month delay - had to resubmit. Although comes with high praise check their work before your approval. Best wishes; it will all work out in the end.

I think you'll find the more experienced members here have learned that the key is to become A-Students of forms and instructions, then to, "Read carefully, interpret literally, and answer accurately."

[roughlyworried 5]

On 1/26/2023 at 7:52 AM, Family said:

Read through his articles and saw his extensive Utah Zoom marriage blog along with the Q &A. His credentials are top notch, he was/is a law professor and his focus is definitely Asia .
Your money will be well spent.

 

 

Thank you for looking into it! That’s what I saw too. My only thought at this point that is stopping me from pulling the trigger is what his reputation is within the US embassies in China, since he has had a lot of dealings with them. But is that even a thing? Where embassies/consular officers have known lawyers that are red flags to them?

[Crazy Cat 41,812]

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