Sophie Alcorn
Founding Partner
Alcorn Immigration Law
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Sophie Alcorn is the founder of Alcorn Immigration Law, dedicated to supporting top global startup founders and their teams to obtain visas and green cards to live and work in the United States.

Sophie believes in overcoming borders, expanding opportunity, and connecting the world. She is passionate about empowering entrepreneurs to build their dreams and scale their companies for the betterment of humanity.

Alcorn Immigration Law is the fastest-growing immigration law firm in Silicon Valley and 2019 Global Law Experts Awards’ “Law Firm of the Year in California for Entrepreneur Immigration Services.”

Sophie is recognized as a Certified Specialist Attorney in Immigration and Nationality Law by the State Bar of California, Board of Legal Specialization. She is recognized by TechCrunch as a Verified Expert Lawyer and was recently named to the list of Top 10 Immigration Attorneys in California.

She frequently speaks at TechCrunch Disrupt, Draper University, Swissnex Accelerator, German Accelerator, and Stanford, among others.

Sophie authors a weekly TechCrunch immigration advice column, Dear Sophie. She is the host of the podcast, Immigration Law for Tech Startups.

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Lieselot Whitbeck
Associate
Hunton Andrews Kurth
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Lieselot is a global immigration lawyer at the firm Hunton Andrews Kurth LLP where she advises on immigration processes around the world. With more than seven years of experience guiding companies and individuals through immigration processes in the US and overseas, Lieselot provides immigration support for corporate assignments and relocations to Europe, the Americas, Asia, and Australia. Given her wide experience in immigration law, she also advises on complex naturalization, employment-based, family-based, and humanitarian immigration matters. She is a member of the Global Migration Section of AILA and a vice-chair of the section’s analytics committee.

 

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Patrick Shen
Partner
Fragomen, Del Rey, Bernsen & Loewy, LLP
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Patrick Shen is a partner with Fragomen’s Government Strategies and Compliance Group. He previously was confirmed unanimously by the U.S. Senate in 2007 as Special Counsel for Immigration-related Unfair Employment Practices. He also served as ICE Policy and Planning Director, Chief Immigration Counsel of the Senate Judiciary Committee, and trial attorney with DOJ’s Office of Immigration Litigation. Patrick was an adjunct professor of law at American University, and became an emergency medical technician in 2002 in Maryland where he still volunteers with his fire department. Patrick was a sports reporter in Taiwan before law school.

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Lieselot Whitbeck
Associate
Hunton Andrews Kurth
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Lieselot is a global immigration lawyer at the firm Hunton Andrews Kurth LLP where she advises on immigration processes around the world. With more than seven years of experience guiding companies and individuals through immigration processes in the US and overseas, Lieselot provides immigration support for corporate assignments and relocations to Europe, the Americas, Asia, and Australia. Given her wide experience in immigration law, she also advises on complex naturalization, employment-based, family-based, and humanitarian immigration matters. She is a member of the Global Migration Section of AILA and a vice-chair of the section’s analytics committee.

 

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Tahmina Watson
Attorney and Founder
Watson Immigration Law
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Tahmina Watson is a nationally acclaimed immigration attorney and founder of Watson Immigration Law in Seattle, Washington, USA. Her practice focuses on business and investment immigration matters. She handles all employment-based visas such as L1A, H1B, O1, E2, EB5 etc.  Her clients include individuals and businesses from all over the world. 

Tahmina was a barrister in London, UK, before immigrating to America herself.  A passionate advocate for immigration reform, Tahmina is the author of “The Startup Visa: Key to Job Growth & Economic Prosperity in America”.  In addition to regularly publishing articles and appearing in the media including CNN, Forbes, The Telegraph and much more, she is the host of “Tahmina Talks Immigration” a radio show turned podcast available on itunes/Spotify and other podcast applications.  Recently, Tahmina founded a non-profit, the Washington Immigrant Defense Network- WIDEN which funds and facilitates legal representation in the immigration courtroom.   She is also cofounder of www.airportlawyer.org, a web portal that helps passengers at the airports seek assistance of volunteer lawyers.

Learn more about Tahmina at www.watsonimmigrationlaw.com and can contact her info@watsonimmigrationlaw.com.

SESSIONS:
Michael F. Hammond
Founder and Managing Partner
Hammond Neal Moore
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Mike is the founder and managing partner of Hammond Neal Moore. HNM was founded in 1991 and is an immigration boutique firm headquartered in Cincinnati with branch offices in Los Angeles, Phoenix, and Portland. The firm handles all types of employment based immigration matters for companies ranging from mom and pop start-ups to Fortune 100 and represents a variety of industries including manufacturing, technology, healthcare, universities, and research to name a few.  Mike’s practice focuses on representing corporations in the IT and healthcare sectors. He is the primary contributor to the firm’s Views on Business Immigration blog. He is a regular speaker at industry conferences hosted by TechServe Alliance and Staffing Industry Analysts. He has also been a speaker for AILA and local bar organizations. He has been named to the International Who’sWho of Corporate Immigration Lawyers since 2008.

 

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Alejandra Zapatero
Managing Attorney
Erickson Immigration Group
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Alejandra Zapatero is a Managing Director with Erickson Immigration Group. Alejandra has been practicing immigration law for 10+ years in Virginia, Washington D.C., and California. Her practice focuses on corporate immigration working with large, medium, small, and startup companies in filing employment-based petitions for foreign workers seeking temporary and permanent employment in the U.S. Her experience includes immigrant and non-immigrant visa petitions. Alejandra advises employers from startups to Fortune 500 companies on establishing and refining immigration programs including strategies for hiring, compliance, and complex immigration matters resulting from corporate restructuring including mergers, acquisitions, and reductions-in-force. 

She has counseled clients on workforce compliance including I-9 issues and public access file audits. Alejandra is proficient in the preparation and filing of non-immigrant visas such as E-3, H-1B, H-1B1, L-1, O-1, and TN. She is also adept in immigrant visa processes, including the preparation and filing of PERM, I-140 petitions, and I-485 Adjustment of Status applications. She is also well-versed in family immigration law and has represented individuals seeking family-based green cards, deferred action of childhood arrival (DACA) work authorization, and naturalization applications. 

Alejandra is a frequent speaker on immigration issues and has presented at various conferences and events including SHRM, Worldwide ERC, Bay Area Mobility Management, British American Business Council, sf.citi, Global HR Business News, and the Council for Global Immigration.

 

SESSIONS:
Moderator: 
Nandini Nair
Partner
Greenspoon Marder
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Nandini P. Nair is a partner in the Immigration and Naturalization practice group and serves on the Management Committee at Greenspoon Marder. Ms. Nair focuses her practice on analysis and processing of U.S. visas, employment-based and family-based applications, naturalization applications and other immigration benefits, as well as, immigration strategy and corporate policy development, training and I-9 and work site compliance, immigration consequences of mergers, acquisitions and other corporate changes.

Ms. Nair anticipates the needs of clients, and seamlessly adapts services and support to the client’s evolving business. Her interest in immigration law stems from her personal background, having emigrated from India to the United States, from her belief in the essential role immigrants play and the positive contributions they make to American society, and from her desire to help people of all backgrounds achieve their goals. Additionally, Ms. Nair was featured on TV Asia’s weekly series, “Bridge to Immigration”, which she co-wrote.

SESSIONS:
Wednesday, November 18, 2020 - 11:00am to 11:55am
Sophie Alcorn
Founding Partner
Alcorn Immigration Law
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Sophie is recognized as a Certified Specialist Attorney in Immigration and Nationality Law by the State Bar of California Board of Legal Specialization. She is recognized by TechCrunch as a Verified Expert Lawyer and was recently named to the list of Top 10 Immigration Attorneys in California. Sophie authors a weekly TechCrunch immigration advice column, Dear Sophie. She is the host of the podcast, Immigration Law for Tech Startups. Alcorn Immigration Law is the fastest-growing immigration law firm in Silicon Valley and 2019 Global Law Experts Awards’ “Law Firm of the Year in California for Entrepreneur Immigration Services.

SESSIONS:
Wednesday, November 18, 2020 - 11:00am to 11:55am
Lieselot Whitbeck
Associate
Hunton Andrews Kurth
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Lieselot is a global immigration lawyer at the firm Hunton Andrews Kurth LLP where she advises on immigration processes around the world. With more than seven years of experience guiding companies and individuals through immigration processes in the US and overseas, Lieselot provides immigration support for corporate assignments and relocations to Europe, the Americas, Asia, and Australia. Given her wide experience in immigration law, she also advises on complex naturalization, employment-based, family-based, and humanitarian immigration matters. She is a member of the Global Migration Section of AILA and a vice-chair of the section’s analytics committee.

 

SESSIONS:
Salman Cheema
Managing Attorney
Erickson Immigration Group
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Salman Cheema is a managing attorney at Erickson Immigration Group in the Global Practice group. Cheema’s focus is in assisting multinational organizations develop an immigration strategy to hire and retain elite talent around the world.

SESSIONS:
Dr. Jessica Kriegel
Managing Director
OE Consulting Group
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Coming soon!

SESSIONS:
Dr. Susan E. Sweeney
CHRO
EnPro Industries
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Dr. Susan Sweeney is the CHRO for EnPro Industries. Previous to taking this position in early 2020, she held the position of President GGB, responsible for operations in the Americas,  Europe and Asia. 

Susan combines strategic vision, operational expertise and technical curiosity to lead change and transform businesses across the globe. Her passion is unleashing potential by connecting people and ideas and believes today’s complex and quickly changing environment requires a different kind of leadership model.

Susan holds an EdD in Organizational Leadership and Innovation, a MBA with a focus on union relations and negotiations and a BA in Economics.

Susan lives in Delaware with her husband and has two adult sons.

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Ann Smith
Executive Director
Books@Work
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Ann Kowal Smith serves as Executive Director of Books@Work.  Books@Work facilitates story-based conversations that deepen the quality of relationships and foster inclusion and collaboration at every level of the workplace. 

Ann has also served as Principal with Heidrick & Struggles International and Expert (Strategy) with McKinsey & Company. Prior to joining McKinsey, Ann practiced corporate and securities law in private and corporate settings.

Ann earned her AB from Bryn Mawr College, her MA from the University of Michigan, and both her JD and DBA from Case Western Reserve University. Her dissertation examined organizational learning and innovation.

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