Linda J. Armstrong is a shareholder practicing in Butzel Long's Detroit office. She is a graduate of Madonna College (B.S., 1982) and Detroit College of Law (J.D., 1988). Ms. Armstrong is listed in The Best Lawyers in America (Immigration Law). Ms. Armstrong concentrates her practice in the area of business and family immigration law, including all aspects involved with the international movement of personnel; immigration consequences of corporate restructuring, mergers and acquisitions; employer and workplace compliance issues, including I-9 and H-1B public access file investigations; inbound and outbound work-authorized immigrant and nonimmigrant matters; and labor certification. Ms. Armstrong is a member of the Firm's Pro Bono Committee and the Firm's Global Automotive Industry Group. Ms. Armstrong provides on-site training to business clients on numerous topics, including US nonimmigrant visas; US permanent resident processing; employer compliance issues, including I-9 completion and compliance and H-1B public access file compliance; and outbound general strategic planning. Ms. Armstrong is a frequent speaker on business immigration to professional and business organizations, including the International Law Section of the State Bar of Michigan, SHRM, and Datatel (DUG) Users Group. Ms. Armstrong has helped organize and has presented at Butzel Long's full-day Immigration Seminar for the past 12 years. She has also participated as a speaker at Butzel Long's Annual Labor and Employment Forum. Ms. Armstrong is a member of the American Bar Association; Federal Bar Association: Immigration Committee Co-Chair; State Bar of Michigan: International Law Section, Council Member; State Bar of Michigan: International Law Section, Immigration Committee - past Co-Chair; Detroit Metropolitan Bar Association; American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA); AILA Michigan Chapter; and AILA Michigan Chapter: Department of Labor Liaison. Prior to joining Butzel Long, Ms. Armstrong was an associate at another major Detroit law firm, where her practice was concentrated in the area of immigration law. She was also employed as Associate General Counsel with Federal-Mogul Corporation where she had responsibility for legal matters relating to employment relations, product liability, advertising, political action committees, and immigration. Experience · Prepared J-1 waivers of 2 year foreign residency requirement based on no-objection letters, interested government agencies, hardship and other grounds · Provided preventative counseling on Department of Homeland Security and Department of Labor investigations and employer sanctions. · Represented clients at Port of Entry to process admission to US under NAFTA · Obtained re-entry permits to maintain permanent residence status in the United States for individuals transferred abroad · Obtained removal of conditions on permanent residency · Preparation of J-1 Exchange Visitor and H-3 Trainee applications and petitions for employees of foreign companies with U.S. facilities · Represented clients in complex naturalization matters including restoration of U.S. citizenship, appeals for denied naturalization applications, and evaluate strategies for overcoming grounds of ineligibility. · Represented employers during investigations conducted by USICE and USDOL regarding employment verification issues · Represented employers in investigations conducted by the USDOL concerning H-1B Labor Condition Application public access file including benching and wage and hour issues. · Represented employers in USCIS administrative site visit · Represented clients in obtaining visas at various US Embassies and Consulates abroad · Represented clients with applications of waiver of inadmissibility due to past legal history or immigration history. · Represented employers during investigations conducted by Immigration and Customs Enforcement or Department of Labor regarding employment verification issues. · Obtained re-entry permit to maintain permanent residency for individuals transferred overseas · Assisted family members in obtaining appropriate fiancé or family based nonimmigrant classification for eligible family members · Assisted with preservation of residency for naturalization purposes for individuals transferred overseas · Conducted in-house training on I-9 form compliance and retention, including electronic completion and storage of I-9 forms · Advised employers regarding maintenance of employer/employee relationship when foreign national is placed offsite · Analyzed effect of corporate changes, including mergers and acquisitions, on foreign national's immigration status. · Assisted employers in obtaining appropriate nonimmigrant classification (TN, H-1B, H-3, L-1A, L-1B, O-1, E-1/E-2, P) and immigrant classification (EB-1, EB-2, EB-3 and EB-5). · Conducted in-house training regarding preparing and maintaining H-1B public access files and Labor Certification Applications · Managed multi-country projects and obtained work authorizations in multiple jurisdictions for individuals of various nationalities. · Obtained approval of Immigration Petition for Alien of Extraordinary Ability for various professionals including engineers, scientists, corporate executives, professional athletes, entertainers, coaches, and trainers. · Obtained permanent resident status pursuant to registry provisions based on residence in U.S. since January 1972 · Conducted internal audits of I-9 forms for clients · Consulted with clients regarding special permanent resident card interviews · Evaluated retention of dual citizenship for U.S. and other countries such as Germany, Italy, Australia, Canada, etc. News Media Releases 11.28.11, 68 Butzel Long attorneys named to DBusiness magazine's Top Lawyers in Metro Detroit 2012 12.02.10, Sixty-four Butzel Long attorneys named to DBusiness magazine's Top Lawyers in Metro Detroit 2011 09.09.10, Butzel Long attorneys named to The Best Lawyers in America® 2011 09.02.10, Four Butzel Long attorneys named for the first time to The Best Lawyers in America® 2011 06.04.09, Butzel Long hosts Business Immigration seminar on June 19, 2009 at Detroit Athletic Club 03.20.08, Butzel Long attorneys featured during MACPA webinar News in brief 10.04.11, Butzel Long attorneys named to The Best Lawyers in America® 2012 Publications Client alerts 04.22.10, E-news: Immigration E-news - 04/22/2010 01.06.09, E-news: Immigration Law - January 6, 2009 12.16.08, E-news: Immigration Law - December 16, 2008 08.14.08, E-news: Immigration Law - August 14, 2008 01.25.08, E-news: Immigration Law - January 25, 2008 11.30.07, E-news: Immigration Law - 11/30/07 Memberships American Bar Association Federal Bar Association: Immigration Committee Co-Chair State Bar of Michigan State Bar of Michigan: International Law Section, Council Member State Bar of Michigan, International Law Section, Immigration Committee - past Co-Chair Detroit Metropolitan Bar Association American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA) AILA Michigan Chapter - Committee Member AILA Michigan Chapter: Department of Labor Liaison Butzel Long Pro Bono Committee Recognitions The Best Lawyers in America, Immigration Law DBusiness Top Lawyers in Metro Detroit, Immigration Law, 2011-2012 |