Irene Vaisman

I graduated from college in 2001 with a degree in Political Science from the State University of New York at Buffalo. I received my Juris Doctor degree in 2004 from New York Law School, located in the heart of New York City. While in college and in Law School, I participated in various internships and legal programs gaining experience in criminal immigration and in immigration law in general. I was also learning how immigration law intercepts with other practice areas. I remember very well, the first pro bono cases from various public interest organizations that sought to help undocumented children with various illnesses. This feeling of passion and compassion has stayed with me during all of the years that I have been practicing.

It seems that I was destined to practice in the field of immigration law. I am a third generation attorney in my family. My grandfather and mother were both attorneys, but not in the United States, in the former Soviet Union. My family immigrated to the United States as refugees back in 1992 running away from societal and religious persecution. I remember our consular interview and how harsh the consular officer was to my family. I was a teenager at the time, but knew I would go to Law School and I would become an immigration attorney and help others obtain their American Dream and hopefully make it easier for other people. The feeling of helplessness is known to most immigrants and I know that feeling first hand and can relate to my clients by providing personal and comprehensive representation, never keeping them in the dark.

After graduating from Law School, and before I decided to start my own practice, I worked with reputable immigration law firms gaining vast knowledge and experience in the field if immigration law. I have successfully represented a culturally diverse and varied group of clients from all over the world seeking immigrant and non-immigrant benefits, as well as relief from removal and deportation. My practice focuses on various aspects of the very complex immigration law, including, but not limited to, representing clients in removal proceedings, appeals and Motions to Reopen and Reconsider to either U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, Immigration Court and the Board of Immigration Appeals, Naturalization issues, Violence Against Women Act cases, asylum and I-601 Waivers, and most recently I-601A Provisional Waivers, successfully helping families.

I have not forgotten how difficult it was for my family when we first immigrated to this country and as a result I actively participate in various immigrant communities with one goal in mind – to educate people and inform them of their rights in this country and the law. I am a frequent guest speaker on various local radio and television programs. I am an active member of the American Immigration Lawyers Association and the New York State Bar Association.

When I do not practice law, I enjoy traveling, classical music, theater and spending time with my family.