“The relationship that I have with my clients is predicated on a principle that I was taught as a child: ‘treat others as you would like to be treated.’ When I needed to hire an attorney, I was looking for someone with these qualities: integrity, truthfulness, advocacy, accessibility, responsiveness, efficiency, and straightforwardness. These are the same qualities that I implement in my own practice of law.”
I grew up in Fountain Valley, Orange County, California to two immigrant parents. I am the youngest of two children. From the time I was a little girl, I wanted to be a doctor. In 2001, I obtained a Bachelor’s Degree in Biology with a minor in Criminal Justice from American University in Washington, D.C. Criminal Justice had always been an interest of mine since I grew up hearing tales of my mother’s experience in the Tanzanian Police Force.
After having worked at Johns Hopkins Hospital as a Surgical Technologist, I decided to attend law school for a career in either Medical Malpractice or Patent Law. I enrolled at American University, Washington College of Law in 2005. During the summer, I completed a Comparative Law Program in London, Paris, Geneva, and Brussels. Since I loved learning, I enrolled in a variety of elective courses that included Space Law, Health Law, Income Tax Law, Wills/Trusts/Estates, Family Law, Patent Law, Pre-Trial Litigation, Trial Advocacy, and Immigration Law. Of course, Immigration Law turned out to be my favorite. The course was taught by Adjunct Professor David McConnell who is the Director of the Office of Immigration Litigation Appellate Section within the Civil Division of the United States Department of Justice. I graduated law school in 2007 with my Juris Doctor.
I am admitted to practice law in New York and the District of Columbia. My practice is limited to federal immigration law, which allows me to represent individuals in any state or U.S. territory.
My approach to the practice of law is simple: “advocate passionately for your client.” This approach has materialized into “put the adjudicator in the client’s shoes.” For this reason, I usually include a document so the adjudicator can “hear” the story through my client’s “voice.”
In my personal life, I try to embody a “pay it forward” mentality by participating in charitable events in my spare time or performing daily “random acts of kindness.” My favorite pastime, of course, is spending quality time with my family and playing with my Yorkshire Terrier, Simba. My hobbies include target shooting, skiing, and painting ceramics.
*Licensed in NY and DC
**Licensed by the U.S. Supreme Court
***Practice Limited to Federal Immigration Only.