Dallas Bar Association
HEADNOTES Focus Immigration/International Law
June 2017 Volume 42 Number 6
Michelle Alden Named DVAP Director Bar None XXXII Presents support of volunteer attorneys. The program provides free legal assistance to over 4,000 The Dallas Volunteer Attorney Program low-income families with civil legal needs (DVAP) is pleased to announce that Michelle each year. Alden has been selected as its The director runs DVAP’s next Director. Ms. Alden, a daily business, including fund10-year employee of DVAP, curraising for the program, managrently serves as the managing ing a staff of 13, and oversight of attorney of the Dallas Volunteer the organization’s budget. Attorney Program, one of the Before practicing law in preeminent pro bono programs Dallas, Alden earned her B.A. in the country, serving thousands in English with high honors from of low-income people in the DalThe University of Texas at Auslas area each year. tin and her J.D. from The UniMs. Alden will succeed Aliversity of Texas School of Law, cia Hernandez who assumed the where she served as an editor role of Executive Director of the of the Texas International Law Dallas Bar Association on JanuJournal. ary 1, 2017. She is a Fellow of the Texas Michelle Alden The Dallas Volunteer AttorBar Foundation and a Life Fellow ney Program is a joint program of the Dallas of the Dallas Bar Association and Dallas AssoBar Association and Legal Aid of NorthWest ciation of Young Lawyers. Ms. Alden is an Texas which was created to address the legal active member of the Junior League of Dallas needs of the poor in Dallas. DVAP is an orga- and enjoys performing in the Dallas Bar Founnization dedicated to increasing and enhanc- dation’s annual Bar None variety show, which ing pro bono legal services to the poor in Dal- raises funds for the Sarah T. Hughes Diversity las through the recruitment, training, and Scholarship Program. STAFF REPORT
Focus
Immigration/International Law
Immigration and Employer Compliance BY LUIS CAMPOS
The enforcement and urgency of immigration law has once again burst into public discourse. Historically, its significance has fluctuated, depending on the nation’s political, economic, and cultural circumstances. Two January 2017 Executive Orders have announced the nation’s priorities, narrowing attention to border security and territorial integrity, as well as public safety and interior enforcement. (These Orders should not be confused with the colloquially termed travel ban orders, which have been vigorously challenged and are currently in litigation.) And while the narrative of the new Orders seems focused on the supply side of immigration, that is, finding and removing undocumented persons, their effect on the demand side of immigration should not be overlooked. Specifically, Sec. 6 of the Order Enhancing Public Safety in the Interior of the United States “ensures the assessment and collection of all fines and penalties that the Secretary is authorized … to assess and collect from aliens unlawfully present in the United States and from those who facilitate their presence in the United States.” Moreover, Sec. 7 mandates the hiring of 10,000 additional enforcement and removal officers. Employers should be on notice. As quick primer, Section 274A(b) of the Immigration and Nationality Act requires employers to verify the identify and employment eligibility of all individuals hired in the United States. The Form
I-9 is the mechanism for documenting verification. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) is the primary body for worksite enforcement and is thus charged with conducting I-9 inspection audits. Receipt of an ICE Notice of Inspection merits serious attention. In recent years, individual companies have been fined hundreds of thousands of dollars for noncompliance. And in many cases, fines were imposed for simple paperwork infractions (See United States v. Hartmann Studios, Inc., 11 OCAHO no. 1255 (2015)). Worksite enforcement was not uncommon in past years. Under the Obama Administration, ICE announced inspection initiatives to protect critical infrastructure. ICE also targeted employers who violated civil employment laws and criminal laws such as document fraud and alien harboring. And while the current administration has not announced similar directives, the cryptic language of Sec. 6, coupled with the push to hire additional enforcement officers, suggests that employers are in store for heightened scrutiny by ICE. Employers are urged to take proactive measures to review and ensure adherence to INA s. 274A(b). Having compliance strategies in place is essential, and employers increasingly undertake voluntary auditing to assess and minimize exposure. Two possible courses of action are internal I-9 audits or the external audit, through the IMAGE program.
Law Law Land BY MICHELLE M. ALDEN
Join the cast and crew of Bar None June 14-17 as they present Bar None XXXII – Law Law Land. This is the 32nd year for the Bar None variety show and it promises to be the best show yet. Watch Dallas area lawyers and judges sing, dance, and make you laugh so hard your sides hurt. As much as the cast and crew love performing and making
people laugh, their real motivation is to support the Sarah T. Hughes Diversity Scholarship program. The scholarship program was established in honor of U.S. District Judge Sarah T. Hughes, a former trustee of the Dallas Bar Foundation, who devoted herself to improving the rights of women and minorities. The Hughes Scholarship provides tuition and fees for deserving minority students each year. Students at SMU Dedman School of Law, UNT Dallas College of Law, and Texas A&M School of Law are eligible to apply for the scholarship. The Dallas Bar Foundation takes its responsibility for finding deserving recipients seriously. If you have ever met a Hughes Scholar, you know how impressive these students are.
Support them by coming to Bar None. Thousands of volunteer hours go into putting on such a large production each year. The hours come from lawyers all over the metroplex including 32-year veteran Director Martha Hardwick Hofmeister, and Producer Tom Mighell, as well as the choreographers, script writers, committee members, actors, and numerous
behind-the-scenes staff. All of these Bar Noners share a passion for making a difference in the lives of the Scholars, our legal community and, for a few hours, the audience members. Show your support for the Dallas legal community and the Hughes Scholars by heading to the Greer Garson Theatre on the SMU Campus June 14-17. To purchase tickets, visit www.barnoneshow.com, or contact Elizabeth Philipp at (214) 220-7487 or ephilipp@dallasbar. org for sponsorship and ticket HN information. Michelle Alden is the Director of the Dallas Volunteer Attorney Program and a Member of the Marketing Committee of the Bar None Production Company. She can be reached at aldenm@lanwt.org.
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Inside 6 The Reshaping of American Immigration Policy 10 Visa Options for Working in the US 14 Pro Bono Golf Tournament 20 How to Prepare for a Government Audit of I-9s & Workforce
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