Founding Shareholder

Board Certified in Immigration & Nationality Law by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization, Elise Healy leads the firm’s business immigration practice. For almost two decades, she has helped U.S. and foreign companies secure the global talent they need to be competitive. Widely recognized as a top attorney in the field of immigration law, Ms. Healy represents businesses ranging from multinationals to start-ups, in all types of immigration matters. She understands that U.S. employers who hire foreign nationals do so because they must recruit specific talent in order to succeed. Ms. Healy partners with her clients to ensure that both employers and employees understand the complex, often uncertain U.S. immigration regime. She works with employers to make certain they comply with federal and, more recently, state laws governing immigration and work authorization.

Ms. Healy is a frequent lecturer on immigration issues before such professional organizations as the American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA), the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM), the Association of Corporate Counsel, Hospitality Financial and Technical Professionals (HFTP), the National Foreign Trade Council, as well as Chambers of Commerce in the U.S. and in China. She served on the AILA-USCIS Texas Service Center liaison committee from 2006-2007 and was selected to serve on the AILA-USCIS California Service Center liaison committee for 2007-08. She is a member of the Immigration and Nationality Law Advisory Committee, Texas Board of Legal Specialization.

• Counsels clients seeking temporary professional or investor visas under the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) and other international treaties.
• Secures temporary and permanent visas for professionals, trainees, multinational executives, managers, and investors, including those seeking million-dollar investor visas.
• Represents a wide range of U.S. employers in all types of immigration and employment matters before the Department of Homeland Security, the Department of Labor, the U.S. Department of State, and in federal court
• Advises clients on compliance with employer sanctions provisions of the Immigration Act and on best practices to avoid I-9 investigations, to handle Social Security "mismatch" letters, and to prepare for government investigations under the Immigration Act and other statutes
• Conducts on-site training for human resources managers, expatriate administrators, and recruiting staff on state and federal legal developments in immigration that affect international transfers
• Coordinates transfer of U.S. personnel abroad, using a network of carefully vetted local counsel in major foreign jurisdictions

Education

J.D, Southern Methodist University Dedman School of Law, 1991
M.P.A., New York University, 1980
A.B., Barnard College, Columbia University, 1972

Bar Admissions

State Bar of Texas

Court Admissions

• U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit
• U.S. District Court, Northern District of Texas

Awards & Recognitions

"The Best Lawyers in America" (2005-2010)
"Texas Super Lawyers" (Texas Monthly magazine, 2006-2009)
Martindale-Hubbell AV^® Peer Review Rated
Who's Who Legal: Texas 2008 (Corporate Immigration)

Publications & Presentations

• "Prepare Now for Stepped-Up Immigration Enforcement," Texas Lawyer (October 2, 2006)
• Depth of Experience. Trusted. A Unique Advantage.
  The Metropolitan Corporate Counsel (September 2008)
• "Hospitality Employers Must Be Proactive About Immigration,"
  Hospitality Law (September 2008)
• "Getting the Immigration Piece Right," presentation to Bank of China and China Merchant Bank private banking clients, Shanghai, China (October 2008)
• "Getting the Immigration Piece Right," presentation sponsored by OlympicLink, Beijing, China (November 2008)
• Radio talk show THINK, with Krys Boyd on KERA 90.1 (November 12, 2008)
• "Employer Responsibility and the Labor Condition Application for Foreign Workers," New Jersey Law Journal (December 5, 2008)
• "New Red Flags for Employment Law Practitioners, Including Rules for Responding to 'No–Match'Letters." Advanced Employment Law seminar sponsored by University of Houston Law Foundation, Dallas and Houston, TX (December 2008)

Professional Affiliations

• American Health Lawyers Association
• American Immigration Lawyers Association
• Dallas Bar Foundation
• Society for Human Resource Management
• Texas Bar Association
• Immigration and Nationality Law Advisory Committee, Texas Board of Legal Specialization

Previous Law Firm Experience

• Epstein Becker & Green, PC
• Baker & McKenzie

AV, BV and AV are registered certification marks of Reed Elsevier Properties Inc., used in accordance with the Martindale-Hubbell certification procedures, standards and policies. Martindale-Hubbell is the facilitator of a peer review rating process. Ratings reflect the confidential opinions of members of the Bar and the Judiciary. Martindale-Hubbell Ratings fall into two categories - legal ability and general ethical standards.