Annette Brigsted is a principal in the Firm's Hartford office where she focuses her practice exclusively on U.S. immigration and nationality law. She provides strategic counseling on all matters of U.S. immigration law, regulation, policy and compliance to a broad range of clients across a variety of industries and economic sectors, including corporations, universities, research institutions, hospitals, and businesses of all sizes. Her practice also includes individual investors, as well as individuals of extraordinary ability in the sciences, business, education, athletics and the arts.
Ms. Brigsted's immigration practice involves executing complex immigration programs for medical providers as well as multinational corporations and their professional and top executive level employees. She works closely with the healthcare sector and international medical professionals to ensure recruitment and retention of physicians and allied healthcare workers. She also handles immigration matters for major research universities, and has particular experience in working with International Medical Graduates, medical clinicians and university faculty members. Ms. Brigsted's experience covers a broad range of services including J-1 waiver applications, National Interest Waivers (NIWs), Extraordinary Ability petitions (O-1 nonimmigrant and EB-1 immigrant), H-1B petitions, Labor Certification Applications under PERM, Immigrant Visa Petitions and Adjustment of Status Petitions, among other immigration-related benefits.
Ms. Brigsted also serves corporations by providing counsel and assistance with respect to all types of employment-related nonimmigrant and immigrant visa categories, including H-1B, L-1, E-3 and TN, as well as PERM Labor Certifications for both professionals and skilled workers (EB-2 and EB-3). Her experience also includes audit letter responses to the Department of Labor, and immigration support for corporate restructuring. She interacts on a regular basis with the United States Department of Labor (DOL), the State Department (DOS), and various U.S. Embassies and Consulates around the world.
While Ms. Brigsted's practice is primarily focused on employment-based immigration, she has additional experience in all aspects of family-based immigration benefits and U.S. Citizenship matters. She routinely represents clients before the United States Citizenship and Immigration Service at Adjustment of Status, Removal of Conditions on Permanent Residence, and Naturalization hearings.
Ms. Brigsted is a regular presenter at corporate client sites on business-related immigration developments and trends, and is a frequent speaker on immigration law topics in the community where she is invited to speak on radio and open forum programs.
Professional & Community Associations
· American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA)
· American-Scandinavian Foundation
· Middlesex County Chamber of Commerce
· Ellis Island Foundation
· National Association of Foreign Student Advisers (NAFSA)