2009 ANNUAL CONFERENCE SPEAKER BIO |
SETH R. LEECH
Seth Leech is a partner with Whiteman Osterman & Hanna and is a member of the Firm’s Immigration and International Trade and Business Practice Groups. Mr. Leech’s primary practice area is immigration law involving employment-based immigrant and nonimmigrant petitions, labor certification, waivers, family-based immigration and asylum. He has developed particular expertise as it relates to the immigration needs of engineers, scientists, researchers, and university personnel. In addition to his immigration work with the Firm, Mr. Leech is an adjunct Professor of Immigration Law at the Albany Law School of Union University. He currently teaches the school’s only course on Asylum and Refugee Law
Affiliations/Professional Activities
Mr. Leech has been a member of the American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA) since 1996. With that organization, he has served as a liaison of the Naturalization Committee and co-chairman of the Asylum Committee for AILA’s South Florida Chapter. More recently, he has served as the Treasurer of AILA’s Upstate New York chapter. Mr. Leech regularly presents on immigration related topics before local colleges and universities, governmental entities, public and private research institutions and a number of community organizations. Fluent in English and Spanish, Mr. Leech is a regular contributor to several regional Spanish language publications.
Background
Mr. Leech received his Juris Doctor from the University of Miami School of Law in Coral Gables, Florida. He graduated from the University of Vermont in 1992 with a Bachelor of Arts in history and psychology. Mr. Leech is admitted in New York, Florida and the District of Columbia.
SETH R. LEECH
Partner
Whiteman Osterman & Hanna LLP
Immigration; International Trade and Business Practice
PROGRAM DESCRIPTION
In the current political and economic climate, HR professionals face significant challenges in both hiring and retaining foreign personnel. This session explores nonimmigrant employment based visa options including the H1B, TN, J-1 and other visas as well as green card options such as PERM labor certification and labor certification-exempt green card options. Also explored are the issues associated with managing immigration concerns for employees in turbulent economic times: lay offs, downsizing, labor market issues and reduction in hours. Finally, this session will cover best practices for structuring employment-based immigration process and dealing with immigration attorneys.