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.

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.

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.

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.

Evan Green is one of the two Senior Partners at Green and Spiegel and is Certified as a Specialist in Immigration Law by The Law Society of Ontario. ​Evan is called to the bar in both Canada and the United States and is able to practice federal immigration law in both countries. Evan has been practicing immigration law for over 25 years and has extensive experience in all areas of Canadian immigration. Evan has been identified for many years as a leading practitioner in immigration law. Evan is considered a subject matter expert in the field, frequently asked to speak as a panelist, moderator and lecturer.

Within the firm, Evan manages the U.S. practice for the firm which includes U.S. immigration matters processed from the Toronto office as well as the 3 offices in the U.S. Evan is particularly skilled at navigating cross-border issues on either side of the Canadian and U.S. border. Evan’s strong understanding of the nuances of Canada/U.S. cross borders issues allows him to provide clear and quick counsel to many companies with business interests in both Canada and the U.S. Evan is a member of the American Immigration Association and, over the years, has held numerous executive positions in the Canadian Chapter including President. Evan also is a leading practitioner in the area of U.S. consular processing and is considered the “go to guy” for many U.S. attorneys who contact Evan on a regular basis regarding processing at the U.S. Consulates in Canada as well as a multitude of issues related to Canada/U.S. border issues.