Susan's experience includes assisting individuals, families and employers in connection with complex U.S. immigration law matters. As Senior Counsel of Womble's Immigration Solutions practice group, her practice is focused on employment-based immigration law, including immigrant and nonimmigrant petitions and visa applications. She also advises employers regarding worksite compliance, including conducting internal I-9 audits and trainings, and negotiating with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) regarding employer sanctions.
Susan is licensed to practice law in New Mexico (currently inactive), North Carolina and Texas. She is a member of the American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA) and has served on AILA's U.S. ICE Liaison Committee, U.S. DOS Liaison Committee, U.S. CBP Liaison Committee, and as Vice Chair of AILA's Carolinas Chapter.
Thought Leadership
Publications
- Immigration Challenges & Solutions: Leveraging International Talent in a Tight Labor Market, Co-Author, Womble Bond Dickinson, November 28, 2022
- USCIS Interim Final Rule Revising Definition of “Specialty Occupation," Author, Womble Bond Dickinson Client Alert, October 2020
- Presidential Proclamation Limits Nonimmigrant Entry, Extends Immigrant Restrictions, Co-Author, Womble Bond Dickinson Client Alert, June 2020
- President Trump Suspends Immigrant Entry to the U.S., Co-Author, Womble Bond Dickinson Client Alert, April 2020
- COVID-19 Immigration-Related Q&A, Co-Author, Womble Bond Dickinson Client Alert, March 2020
- COVID-19: European Travel Ban, Co-Author, Womble Bond Dickinson Client Alert, March 2020
- USCIS Reaches FY2020 H-1B Cap, Co-Author, Womble Bond Dickinson Client Alert, April 2019
- USCIS Announces FY 2020 H-1B Cap Season Start, Updates, and Changes, Co-Author, Womble Bond Dickinson Client Alert, March 2019
- Taxation and Family Immigration: When the Numbers Get Foggy, Co-Author for the American Immigration Lawyers Association 2019 Annual Conference, June 2019
- My Visa Application Has Been Denied – Now What? Author, for the State Bar of Texas 13th Annual Advanced Immigration Law Course, February 2015
- Immigration Case Backlog Swells in El Paso, Interview by El Paso, Inc., January 2014
- The Permanent Resident Timeline Tightrope, Co-Author, for the 35th (2011) and 36th (2012) Annual Immigration and Nationality Law Conference, University of Texas School of Law
- I heard that SSA No Match Letters to Employers Are On the Way - Why Is That Relevant to Me? Ask the Legal Professional Q&A, US Immigration Nationality Law, El Paso, Inc., April 2011
Presentations
- Naturalization 101, Panelist, American Immigration Lawyers Association Annual Conference on Immigration Law, July 2020
- Taxation and Family Immigration: When the Numbers Get Foggy, Speaker, American Immigration Lawyers Association 2019 Annual Conference, June 2019
- Consequences of a DUI Conviction, Speaker, American Immigration Lawyers Association, Audio Seminar, August 2016
- Yemen Without a U.S. Embassy-Now What? Speaker, American Immigration Lawyers Association, Podcast, January 2016
- Ports of Entry-Border Ahoy! Speaker, American Immigration Lawyers Association 2015 Annual Conference, June 2015
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection Open Forum, Speaker, American Immigration Lawyers Association Spring CLE Conference, April 2015
- IV and NIV Consular Processing Denials, Speaker, State Bar of Texas 13th Annual Advanced Immigration Law Course, February 2015
- National Visa Center: Best Practices and Tips in IV Cases, Speaker, American Immigration Lawyers Association, Podcast, May 2014
- Family-Based Consular Processing: I Knew You Were Trouble, Speaker, American Immigration Lawyers Association, Audio Seminar, November 2013
- Habeas and Mandamus in Immigration Cases, Speaker, Federal Bar Association, El Paso Chapter, July 2013
- Immigration Consequences of Crimes, Speaker, Federal Bar Association, El Paso Chapter, November 2012
- Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals - What Attorneys Should Know About this New Program Benefitting Certain Undocumented Immigrant Children, Speaker, Federal Bar Association, El Paso Chapter, August 2012
- Ethical Issues in Representing Foreign Nationals in Family-Based Immigration and Removal Proceedings, Speaker, American Immigration Lawyers Association, Carolinas Chapter CLE, Charlotte, North Carolina, May 2009
- Immigration Workshop for the Bench and Bar, Speaker, Mecklenburg County Bar, Charlotte, NC, March 2009
- Exposing the Dilemma, An Educational Forum on the Moral and Legal Complexities of Immigration, Speaker, St. Gabriel’s Catholic Church, Charlotte, NC, October 2008
Professional & Civic Engagement
- Buncombe County Bar
- American Immigration Lawyers Association
- Member, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Liaison Committee, 2018-2019
- Member, U.S. Department of State Liaison Committee, 2015-2016
- Member, U.S. Customs and Border Protection Liaison Committee, 2012-2015
- Program Co-Chair, Texas Chapter Annual Fall Conference, 2011
- Vice Chair, Carolinas Chapter, 2008-2009
- Volunteer, Military Assistance Program
- Federal Bar Association, El Paso Chapter
- Board Member, 2012-2014
- Education Committee, 2012-2014; Chair, 2013-2014
- Practicing on the Border CLE Planning Committee, 2012-2014
- El Paso Women’s Bar Association, 2012-2015
- Franklin School of Innovation's Board of Directors, 2019 - 2022
Honors & Awards
- Chambers USA Ranked Lawyer, Immigration, North Carolina, 2021 – Present
- Recognized in Business North Carolina magazine's Legal Elite, Immigration Law, 2020, 2021, 2023
- Chambers Global Recognized Business Immigration Practice Group, 2012 – 2014
- Chambers USA Recognized Immigration Practice, 2014
- Martindale-Hubbell AV Preeminent Peer Review Rating
