Welcome back from this years snow storm, but are you still feeling adrift from the changes taking place in Immigration? Each year, NJICLE’s comprehensive Annual Immigration Conference, designed for those with experience in immigration law, provides an in-depth exploration of the most pressing concerns confronted by immigration and employment counsel, in house counsel and human resources representatives and offers effective strategies for dealing with those concerns. From changes at the District Office of USCIS and the Regional Processing Centers to increased enforcement actions from USCIS, ICE and DOL against employers, you are given an opportunity to hear about changes that have occurred and why, and changes that are about to be implemented from the government representatives responsible for instituting the policy’s.

The Tenth Annual Conference features informative presentations by key representatives from various governmental agencies that directly impact on daily immigration practice. This year’s immigration conference is a must for company representatives charged with I-9, E-Verify and responsible for navigating the complex area of immigration compliance. We will discuss how to prepare for audits from USCIS; ICE and Wage and Hour; discuss how to correct errors found to minimize a company’s exposure, and explain best practices for E-Verify and I-9.

Key government representatives include:

• Chief of Staff, Office of Fraud Detection & National Security; USDHS Washington DC;
• Associate Legal Advisor; Office of the Principal Legal Advisor; USDHS; Immigrations and Customs Enforcement; Washington D.C.;
• Assistant District Director, US Dept. of Labor, ESA, Wage & Hour Div, New Jersey;
• Deputy Associate Counsel, Civil Rights Division, Department of Justice, Washington, DC;
• Deputy Chief, Verification Division, USCIS Washington DC.
• EOIR;
• Director of the NJ Asylum Office;
• Field Office Director; New Jersey District Office, USCIS;
• Chief of Staff; New Jersey District Office, USCIS Newark, New Jersey;
• Section Managers; New Jersey District Office USCIS;
• Associate Directors Office, Domestic Operations, USCIS Headquarters, Washington, DC; 

This year’s program will address/include a discussion of:

• The January 8, 2010 Donald Neufeld memo “Determining Employer-Employee Relationship for Adjudication of H-1B Petitions, Including Third Party Site Placement;
• H-1B 2011 Cap projections and new prevailing wage issues and challenges;
• Fraud Detection & National Security H-1B site visits: What employers can do to prepare;
• A review of recent ICE enforcement actions;
• The purpose and goals of the E-Verify enforcement unit;
• Wage and Hour audits and how to minimize an employer’s exposure to back pay awards, civil fines and disbarment;
• How to implement E-verify and avoid civil rights violations in the process;
• I-9/ E verify compliance best practices;
• How to avoid the hiring of foreign nationals without valid work authorization;
• When and how to  terminate employees who are found to be without valid work authorization;
• Policies and “best practices” to be sure to avoid discrimination as to national origin and citizenship:
• Use of electronic programs to monitor I-9/E-Verify processes and audit procedures;
• Update on comprehensive immigration reform and efforts to increase processing quotas and reduce processing times;

No other program provides both a practical explanation of the issues facing attorneys and human resources departments and an opportunity to directly address the decision makers responsible for implementing and regulating the complex immigration laws, and hear their views.

The schedule is as follows:

9:00 – 9:55             UPDATE FROM ASYLUM OFFICE; EOIR;

Moderator: Amy Gotlieb Esq.

• Sue Raufer, Esq. – Director Asylum Unit, USICS
• Judge Annie Garcy – EOIR

10:00 – 10:55    UPDATE FROM THE NEW JERSEY DISTRICT OFFICE

Moderator:  Robert Frank Esq.

• John Thompson; District Director; New Jersey District Office USCIS, Newark, New Jersey

• Kimberly Zanotti; Field Office Director ; New Jersey District Office USCIS Newark, New Jersey

• Russell Owen; Chief of Staff; New Jersey District Office USCIS Newark, New Jersey

• John Carrington;  Misc. Section Manager; New Jersey District Office USCIS Newark, New Jersey

• Joseph Cardinale;  Naturalization Section Manager; New Jersey District  Office USCIS; Newark, New Jersey

• Al Parra;  Supervisory Immigration Officer (FDNS); New Jersey District Office USCIS; Newark, New Jersey

11: 00 – 12:00   UPDATE FROM USICS HEADQUARTERS

Moderator:  David Grunblatt Esq.

• Michael Aytes – Associates Director, Domestic Operations, USCIS (Washington, DC)*   (confirmed will send a representative)

12:00 – 1:30   LUNCH – LEGISLATIVE UPDATE

Crystal Williams; Executive Director AILA (Washington DC)

Likelihood of passage of Comprehensive Immigration Reform and other Immigration related Bills

1:45 – 3:30 ADVANCED ISSUES IN IMMIGRATION ENFORCEMENT; REGULATORY COMPLIANCE; PRESENT AND FUTURE EFFORTS

Moderator: Neil Dornbaum Esq.

• Ronald Atkinson – Chief of Staff Office of Fraud Detection & National Security; USDHS Washington DC
• Paul E. Gleason; Associate Legal Advisor; Office of the Principal Legal Advisor; USDHS; Immigrations and Customs Enforcement; Washington D.C. 
• John Warner -  Assistant District Director; US Dept. of Labor, ESA, Wage & Hour Div, New Jersey

3:40 – 5:00 ADVANCED ISSUES IN VOLUNTARY COMPLIANCE MODELS; CONSISTANT HIRING PRACTICES & ANTIDISCRIMIATION ISSUES

Moderator: Kathleen Peregoy Esq.

• Jennifer Sultan; OSC attorney; Civil Rights Division, Department of Justice
• Kathy Lotspeich, Deputy Chief, Verification Division, USCIS