Susan Renee Fortino-Brown

Susan Fortino-Brown has practiced in the field of Immigration Law exclusively since 1987. Ms. Fortino-Brown has served in several leadership positions with the National American Immigration Lawyers Association (“AILA”), including the Chair of the AILA Field Operations Liaison Committee to the United States Citizenship & Immigration Services (“USCIS”). She has also served on the following National AILA committees: Nebraska Service Center (“NSC”) Liaison Committee, USCIS Benefits Committee, National Benefits Center (“NBC”) Liaison, AILA National Ethics Committee, and the AILA Board of Governors, while simultaneously serving as Chapter Chair of the Chicago AILA chapter. In addition, Ms. Fortino-Brown acted as a member of the American Immigration Council (“AIC”) Board of Trustees, and she is presently the Co-Chair of the Leadership Council of the National Immigration Justice Center (“NIJC”) of Heartland Alliance in Chicago. Ms. Fortino-Brown is currently on the Chicago AILA District Director Liaison committee. She has been a contributing author for past AILA Immigration & Nationality Law Handbooks, and speaks frequently at regional and national Immigration Law conferences. Her clients are diverse within the immigration field, and include individuals and owners of businesses, a nationally prominent University and its faculty members, professional baseball players, competitive figure skaters, fashion designers, as well as individuals in family-based immigration, naturalization, asylum and deportation/removal matters. Ms. Fortino-Brown hosted a weekly Spanish radio program on Immigration Law and has appeared on national and local television and radio as an expert on the topic. She has been recognized by the Women's Bar Association of Illinois, receiving the “Women with Vision" award. Ms. Fortino-Brown has been featured in the Chicago Tribune, the Chicago Sun Times and Chicago Lawyer Magazine. Ms. Fortino-Brown speaks Italian and is fluent in Spanish.