Hiring an Attorney

[Divinepath 13]

Please does hiring an immigration attorney case make your case move faster?

[April Mora 91]

Honestly, no. Having an attorney will just make filing easier if you are nervous about collecting documents yourself.

[Dutchster 1,106]

Nope.

[geowrian 22,335]

No, an attorney cannot make a case go any faster. It's just not possible*.

 

A good attorney should ensure you have all the right forms, evidence, and everything completed, which may reduce the chance of getting an RFE. However for simple cases, a lawyer is - IMHO - more likely to just get in the way.

Edited May 19, 2017 by geowrian

[Transborderwife 4,666]

It can actually slow the process 

[Cyberfx1024 7,978]

No, a good attorney can not make your case move faster. While in fact there have been numerous instances on here where cases have actually slowed down due to problems with an attorney.

[Unlockable 7,306]

There have been cases where attorneys have slowed the process (remember you will not be your only client). There is no method, outside of expediting which requires a set of circumstances, that speeds up the process.

[Dohan 133]

No they cannot move the case quicker. The speed of the case depends on your evidence, your background, a bazillion other factors, and how lazy USCIS is feeling that day. You should hire an attorney if you have a complex case: ie criminal history, any immigration transgressions in countries outside of USA, etc. Because they will know how to deal with it. 

If you have a straightforward case, you do not need an attorney.

[millefleur 5,035]

Like everyone else said, a lawyer isn't going to make anything go faster.

 

Hire a lawyer only if you a.) have a really complicated case legally, such as criminal convictions, etc or b.) simply do not want to do the paperwork yourself (as it takes time and effort.)

 

The speed of your case can also be affected by which service center your paperwork is sent to, but unfortunately it's randomly selected and we have no control over where it will be sent.

[MrsBonsu 138]

I have an attorney, and no it won't make it go faster, I choose to use an attorney because I didn't know the process and I work to many hours, if you choose to use a attorney do research on him or her before hiring, I was lucky mine was referred to me by a person who used him for the same thing and he is a awesome attorney so I had no issues and my case moved in a timely manner, and mostly your greatest obstacle while be at the embassy when your fiancée or spouse has the interview, this is the toughest embassy ever, so make sure whatever you submit make sure your fiancee or spouse knows it inside and out! And make sure they know you inside and out, the embassy will ask anything and it's not the same questions for everyone so be prepared and read through older post in Ghana's portal here, and also good luck! 😊😉

[Scandi 3,970]

Even if you hire a lawyer you still need to do most of the work yourself. The lawyer won't develop/order photos of the two of you, s/he won't send requests for tax transcripts and divorce decrees, s/he won't come to your home and look for boarding passes, passport stamps etc. You still need to collect everything yourself and that's what takes the most time. The lawyer will fill in the forms and that's what takes the least effort and the least time. If you're lucky s/he might actually know the process and tell you what you need to collect - visajourney can do that for you for free.

 

[Crazy Cat 39,213]

6 hours ago, Lee1303 said:

Please does hiring an immigration attorney case make your case move faster?

Honestly, I feel my attorney absolutely did NOT help our case.  Feel free to message me for details.

[Dashinka 23,235]

I agree, an attorney or visa service cannot make things go faster, and if they are claiming they can make it go faster, I would suggest looking for someone else if you choose that route.

 

Good Luck!

[Crazy Cat 39,213]

Clarification:  I feel hiring an attorney can help you organize the information, but even with perfect organization and preparation, the actual process itself is slow and stressful...imo.

 

Good Luck.......

[Allie D 39]

As others have noted, an attorney won't necessarily speed up your case. However, if you have a complicated case or questions that can't be answered by crowdsourcing on a forum, an attorney's advice can give you direction and thus "speed up" the case. My husband and I filed for AOS without an attorney. However, he's anxious about the interview -- he wants to reschedule it and wants professional advice on whether it's a good idea for our specific case. He would also feel better if an attorney looks through the new evidence that we've collected. We're going in for a consultation to ask final questions. Will this "speed up" our case? It might put my husband's mind at ease but it won't have any effect on the interview date. If we reschedule, the new date is completely up to USCIS' discretion. We're seeing a good lawyer but he won't be able to get us an earlier date.  

Edited May 19, 2017 by Allie D