Jewell Stewart & Pratt is pleased to announce that five of its lawyers have been selected for inclusion in Northern California Super Lawyers ® in 2017. Super Lawyers is a rating service of outstanding lawyers from more than 70 practice areas who have attained a high degree of peer recognition and professional achievement. The selection process includes independent research, peer nominations and peer evaluations.
Update: Effect of U.S. Supreme Court Order on Second Executive Order / Travel Ban 2.0
Executive Order 13780 (EO-2), signed by President Trump on March 6, 2017, ordered the suspension of entry by citizens and nationals of six countries – Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria, and Yemen – for at least 90 days from its effective date of March 16, 2017. Litigation in U.S. federal courts temporarily prevented the ban from being carried out. The Trump Administration appealed these courts’ decisions and, on June 26, 2017, the Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) decided to hear the Trump Administration’s appeals. Pending its full review and decision, SCOTUS partially reinstated EO-2.
U.S. Supreme Court Order on Second Executive Order / Travel Ban 2.0
On June 26, 2017, the Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) decided to hear the Trump Administration’s appeals from the decisions of the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals and the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, related to the administration’s second Executive Order regarding travel and refugee admissions (“EO-2”). SCOTUS will hear arguments from the parties in October 2017.
Ninth Circuit Decision on Travel Ban 2.0
News Release from Jewell Stewart & Pratt PC
On June 12, 2017 the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit issued an order upholding the District Court’s decision to block President Trump’s second Executive Order regarding travel and refugee admissions (i.e., “Travel Ban 2.0”).
The Ninth Circuit’s order states that “the President, in issuing the Executive Order, exceeded the scope of the authority delegated to him by Congress” and that “the Order runs afoul of other provisions of the INA that prohibit nationality-based discrimination.” The court affirmed the lower court’s decision to enjoin the travel ban and prevent suspension or limitations to the refugee program. However, the court also vacated the lower court’s decision to prevent the government’s internal reviews of visa issuance procedures.
The Ninth Circuit’s decision follows on the heels of the Fourth Circuit’s May 25, 2017 decision also blocking the ban. The administration is already seeing U.S. Supreme Court review of the Fourth Circuit decision.
© Jewell Stewart & Pratt PC 2017
Update: State Department now using Form DS-5535, Supplemental Questions for Visa Applicants
News Release from Jewell Stewart & Pratt PC – June 5, 2017 As noted in our prior post, the Department of State recently published a Notice of request for emergency approval by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for its new form, Form DS-5535, Supplemental Questions for Visa Applicants. The form was designed to collect extra information from visa applicants who have been determined to warrant additional scrutiny in connection with terrorism or other national security-related visa ineligibility.
According to a news report from The Washington Post, Form DS-5535 was approved by the OMB and has been in use at U.S. embassies and consulates since May 25, 2017. A copy of the form is currently available on the U.S. Embassy and Consulates in Turkey website. The extra information it collects includes:
- Countries visited over the last fifteen years
- Email addresses used in the past five years
- Social media handles and aliases used in the past five years
Form DS-5535 is authorized on an emergency basis through November 2017, but as The Washington Post article notes, it is expected to be authorized on a permanent basis.
© Jewell Stewart & Pratt PC 2017
USCIS reports 27.7% increase in applications for U.S. citizenship
News Release from Jewell Stewart & Pratt PC – June 4, 2017 On April 30, 2017, U.S. Citizenship & Immigration Services (USCIS) released data related to the number of applications and petitions it processed in the first quarter of its 2017 fiscal year (October 1, 2016 to December 31, 2016). The number of N-400 applications for naturalization was 239,628, compared with 187,635 for the same period in the prior fiscal year – an increase of 27.7%.
Current and historical USCIS data on Form N-400 applications can be found at the USCIS website here. Further coverage of the spike in naturalization applications can be found in the May 30, 2017 edition of the Daily Journal legal newspaper, for which Jewell Stewart & Pratt PC principal Claire Pratt was interviewed and quoted.
© Jewell Stewart & Pratt PC 2017
Department of State plans to heighten screening and vetting of visa applicants: Update
As noted in our prior blog post, a Department of State cable sent by Secretary Tillerson on March 17, 2017 provided immediately effective guidance to all U.S. diplomatic and consular posts regarding the screening and vetting of visa applications.
On May 4, 2017, the Department of State published a Notice of request for emergency OMB approval and public comment on a new Form DS-5535, Supplemental Questions for Visa Applicants. This form would collect information from visa applicants who have been determined to warrant additional scrutiny in connection with terrorism or other national security-related visa ineligibility.
Diversity Visa Lottery Program entrants can check status online now
News Release from Jewell Stewart & Pratt PC – May 2, 2017 From now through September 30, 2017, entrants in the DV-2018 Diversity Visa Lottery may check the status of their entries through the State Department’s Entry Status Check website.
Entry Status Check is the only means by which the State Department will notify DV-2018 entrants of their selection. It will give winners instructions on how to proceed with their application for U.S. permanent residence, and will provide them with the date, time, and location of their immigrant visa interview.
For general information about the annual Diversity Visa Lottery, visit the State Department’s Diversity Visa website.
© Jewell Stewart & Pratt PC 2017
USCIS policy memorandum regarding use of Computer Programmers occupation in H-1B petitions
On March 31, 2017, U.S. Citizenship & Immigration Services (USCIS) released a policy memorandum (hereinafter, “the new memo”) explicitly rescinding a prior memo on H-1B computer-related positions, and thereby reinforcing current USCIS practice related to the use of the Computer Programmers occupation code in H-1B petitions. This post provides background information and discusses how future H-1B petitions will be affected.
U.S. district court dismisses legal challenge to rule allowing 24-month STEM OPT extensions
News Release from Jewell Stewart & Pratt – April 21, 2017 On March 11, 2016, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) published a Final Rule that provided for, among other items, 24-month extensions to Optional Practical Training (OPT) work authorization for foreign nationals in F-1 student visa status who would otherwise be limited to twelve months of OPT. See our blog post discussing the rule here.
On June 17, 2016 this new Final Rule became the subject of a lawsuit before the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia. On April 19, 2017, however, the court dismissed the lawsuit. The court found that the plaintiffs failed to state a claim upon which relief could be granted.
The Final Rule therefore remains in force: 24-month extensions to post-completion OPT are still available in appropriate circumstances, and prior grants of such OPT remain valid. The plaintiffs have not yet announced whether they will appeal the decision.
© Jewell Stewart & Pratt 2017