Suzan Kern

Suzan’s practice focuses exclusively on immigration and nationality law. Suzan represents businesses and individuals in administrative proceedings before the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, U.S. Customs and Border Protection, U.S. Department of Labor, and U.S. Department of State.

Suzan devotes more than 100 hours annually to pro bono work through direct representation and by mentoring other attorneys. She coordinates the Washington office’s signature pro bono project at the Montgomery County Family Justice Center in Rockville, Maryland, which helps victims of domestic violence obtain immigration relief.

Suzan is a contributing author to the Hunton Immigration Law Blog.

• Helps clients and their dependents obtain nonimmigrant status as business visitors and tourists (B-1/B-2), interns and trainees (J-1, H-3), temporary workers (H-1B, L-1, O-1, TN), and treaty traders and investors (E-1/E-2).
• Develops and implements optimal strategies to ensure that employers in all industry sectors obtain and maintain employment authorization for key foreign-national employees.
• Represents and advises companies through all stages of sponsoring employees for U.S. permanent residence ("green cards") as skilled workers and professionals (EB-3), as advanced-degree professionals (EB-2), and as multinational managers, outstanding researchers, and aliens of extraordinary ability (EB-1).
• Prepares and files complex applications at consular posts to register foreign parent companies as E Treaty Traders/Investors.
• Establishes and updates company blanket L programs to streamline intra-company transfers of executives, managers, and specialized knowledge professionals to the U.S.
• Obtains cap-exempt status for nonprofit research organizations, enabling them to obtain H-1B workers year-round without regard to the H-1B cap.
• Counsels foreign-national employees and their family members on maintaining valid nonimmigrant status in the U.S. and on renewing visas at U.S. embassies and consulates worldwide.
• Advises employers on developing immigration policies and practices to ensure compliance with relevant laws and regulations, including I-9 compliance.
• Conducts on-site immigration trainings, workshops, and I-9 audits for companies and their foreign-national employees.
• Assists U.S. citizens and permanent residents in sponsoring relatives for permanent residence through adjustment of status and consular processing of immigrant visas.
• Represents individuals in applying for naturalization as U.S. citizens and in proving claims to derivative and acquired U.S. citizenship.
• Represents pro bono clients in obtaining lawful status through humanitarian relief, such as asylum, permanent residence under the Violence Against Women Act, Temporary Protected Status, family hardship waivers, and U status for crime victims.

• Recommended for Immigration, Legal 500 United States, 2020-2024
• 2017 Arthur C. Helton Memorial Human Rights Award, American Immigration Lawyers Association, for service as an “Airport Lawyer” at Dulles International Airport, providing legal assistance to travelers caught in the “Travel Ban”
• Beacon of Justice Award, National Legal Aid & Defender Association, recognizing firm’s contributions in expanding legal services to the underserved, 2015
• Pro Bono Champion Award, American Immigration Lawyers Association, annually since 2007
• State Bar of Texas Pro Bono College, annually since 2012
• Pro Bono Award, The National Law Journal, recognizing advocacy on behalf of Haitian immigrants following the 2010 earthquake, 2011
• Herbert S. Garten Public Citizen Award, Maryland Legal Services Corporation, recognizing partnership with the Montgomery County Family Justice Center in Rockville, 2010
• Beacon of Justice Award, National Legal Aid & Defender Association, recognizing firm’s contributions in immigration law, 2010
• E. Randolph Williams Award, for contributing 100+ pro bono hours per year to legal services, annually since 2002

• Member, American Immigration Lawyers Association, 2002-present
• Member, National Association for Women Lawyers, 2020-present