Why would one hire a legal representative/lawyer for their naturalization?

[krnjin 0]

All I could think is because 

 

1. They cannot fluent English/not a native English Speaker.

2. They do not want to file themselves.

 

What other benefits are there to hire a legal representative?

[Going through 5,668]

Some people consult/use a lawyer if they have criminal history, or an otherwise not "straightforward" case and don't feel comfortable filing without the assistance of an attorney.

 

Some people think using a lawyer is a guaranteed approval/will make the process go faster somehow.

[Unlockable 7,306]

Agreed that it is mostly for criminal history as a PR. They may need help convincing a judge that they will be a law abiding citizen moving forward.

[klmnl2000 18]

We used a lawyer for the conditional green card application even though we had a pretty straightforward case. We assumed that officers would scrutiny cases submitted by individuals more than cases submitted by attorneys. We thought that officers would think that cases submitted by attorneys prepared much more carefully and they wouldn't want to deal with attorneys if anything. This is only our assumption and I don't know how it works in real life but we got approved very quickly and without any issues. Our friends on the other hand also had a pretty straightforward case but submitted everything by themselves and got denied. 

[Lemon23 400]

We did my AOS, ROC and N-400 on our without hiring a lawyer, because we don't have money to pay a lawyer to begin with, our case is very straightforward though.

We just did a lot of research and understanding and followed the instructions on each form, so far no issue for us from AOS, ROC to N-400.

Hiring a lawyer wont make the application process faster, and I do believe if the case is complicated then you do need a lawyer, because there are technical terms that can lawyer understand.

[Going through 5,668]

9 hours ago, klmnl2000 said:

We used a lawyer for the conditional green card application even though we had a pretty straightforward case. We assumed that officers would scrutiny cases submitted by individuals more than cases submitted by attorneys. We thought that officers would think that cases submitted by attorneys prepared much more carefully and they wouldn't want to deal with attorneys if anything. This is only our assumption and I don't know how it works in real life but we got approved very quickly and without any issues. Our friends on the other hand also had a pretty straightforward case but submitted everything by themselves and got denied. 

Using an attorney doesn't guarantee an approval.

 

In the case of what happened to your friends----well, all I can say is that I had a very NON straightforward case (criminal history with CIMTs) and I submitted everything my myself---and got approved.  Without knowing the details of your friends application, you can't assume that the reason you got approved and they got denied was because they didn't use a lawyer...it could have been one of a multitude of reasons.

[krnjin 0]

3 minutes ago, Going through said:

Using an attorney doesn't guarantee an approval.

 

In the case of what happened to your friends----well, all I can say is that I had a very NON straightforward case (criminal history with CIMTs) and I submitted everything my myself---and got approved.  Without knowing the details of your friends application, you can't assume that the reason you got approved and they got denied was because they didn't use a lawyer...it could have been one of a multitude of reasons.

Oh, you got approved with CIMT? Was it within the 5-year grace period of GMC? Were you off probation? Do you mind sharing some of your experience of the naturalization process?

 

I'm dealing with something non-straightforward case as well and debating whether to hire an attorney for naturalization.

[Going through 5,668]

3 minutes ago, krnjin said:

Was it within the 5-year grace period of GMC?

Yes.  Actually I waited a good 10 years before applying for the N400 due in part to my criminal history.

 

4 minutes ago, krnjin said:

Were you off probation?

Was never given probation as part of my sentence.  I can tell you, though, that if one is in open probation at the time the N400 is adjudicated, the IO must deny the application under USCIS policy.

 

5 minutes ago, krnjin said:

Do you mind sharing some of your experience of the naturalization process?

I did not use a lawyer at any part of my process (AOS/ROC or N400).  My crimes were committed outside of the USA.

 

Disclose the arrests on the N400 application, and answer all questions honestly.  Whether the case has been expunged/dismissed/charges withdrawn/etc. does not matter---you must still disclose it and provide appropriate documentation.

 

Submit court-certified documents pertaining to the disposition of each case with your application (or a court-certified statement that the records have been purged/destroyed depending on how long ago the crime occurred), and bring another set to the interview incase the IO asks to see them again.  They are generally not interested in WHY you committed the crimes, they are solely interested in what the final disposition of each case was, if any outstanding fines/probation has been paid or served, and what the maximum sentence for each crime is (regardless of what actual sentence was served by the offender). 

 

If you were placed on probation/court ordered classes or service----include official paperwork detailing that the probationary period has been successfully completed.

 

You can read how it was handled in my interview through the link in my signature below.  

[Qian 33]

I had two very "un-straightforward" cases- filing I-130 while living abroad, and then N-400 under 319B still living in abroad. 

Attorneys did n't take my I-130 case- because "I live abroad, and I can't get it, even I get it, I can't keep it".

It sounded different than what I have learned on USCIS website, so I started everything myself. All went great.

 

I learned from this experience is that if you read through the related info on USCIS site, it will show you the way. Do more search, ask more questions on the forum, then more search, more reading again...

I feel the info is very transparent and the instructions are very clear too.

 

 

 

 

[krnjin 0]

23 minutes ago, Going through said:

Yes.  Actually I waited a good 10 years before applying for the N400 due in part to my criminal history.

 

Was never given probation as part of my sentence.  I can tell you, though, that if one is in open probation at the time the N400 is adjudicated, the IO must deny the application under USCIS policy.

 

I did not use a lawyer at any part of my process (AOS/ROC or N400).  My crimes were committed outside of the USA.

 

Disclose the arrests on the N400 application, and answer all questions honestly.  Whether the case has been expunged/dismissed/charges withdrawn/etc. does not matter---you must still disclose it and provide appropriate documentation.

 

Submit court-certified documents pertaining to the disposition of each case with your application (or a court-certified statement that the records have been purged/destroyed depending on how long ago the crime occurred), and bring another set to the interview incase the IO asks to see them again.  They are generally not interested in WHY you committed the crimes, they are solely interested in what the final disposition of each case was, if any outstanding fines/probation has been paid or served, and what the maximum sentence for each crime is (regardless of what actual sentence was served by the offender). 

 

If you were placed on probation/court ordered classes or service----include official paperwork detailing that the probationary period has been successfully completed.

 

You can read how it was handled in my interview through the link in my signature below.  

Thanks for sharing! 

 

So your previous 5 years GMC grace period were clean..

 

I was convicted of DUI about 2.5 years ago and I guess I would need to hire an attorney for my case.

5 minutes ago, Qian said:

I had two very "un-straightforward" cases- filing I-130 while living abroad, and then N-400 under 319B still living in abroad. 

Attorneys did n't take my I-130 case- because "I live abroad, and I can't get it, even I get it, I can't keep it".

It sounded different than what I have learned on USCIS website, so I started everything myself. All went great.

 

I learned from this experience is that if you read through the related info on USCIS site, it will show you the way. Do more search, ask more questions on the forum, then more search, more reading again...

I feel the info is very transparent and the instructions are very clear too.

 

 

 

 

I would file it myself but since my case isn't too normal, I think hiring lawyer might help to clarify the situation a little. 

Edited May 1, 2019 by krnjin

[Going through 5,668]

23 minutes ago, krnjin said:

I was convicted of DUI about 2.5 years ago and I guess I would need to hire an attorney for my case.

Not necessarily.  A lot will depend on what your actual charge was, and what the outcome was.

Generally speaking, a single DUI (not involving bodily harm to anyone else, not involving children in any way---ie. no children in the car at the time) is not a barrier to naturalization.

 

If you are under probation at the time your case is adjudicated, then yes, it is an automatic denial by USCIS policy---no attorney would be able to overcome that. 

 

If you are under probation and that probationary period is over before the interview takes place, it still counts towards building your GMC period.  

 

GMC is a subjective thing to the IO during your interview---in other words, they do have some wiggle room both ways.   If it's your only offence (not multiple DUIs, or other criminal history in or outside the US), that is also a mark in your favor.

Edited May 1, 2019 by Going through

[millefleur 5,037]

**Duplicate hijack post has been removed. Please do not post the exact same question in multiple forums or as responses to other threads as this is considered spamming the boards.**

 

VJ Moderation

[Calicolom 265]

Many years ago when I applied for my citizenship, immigration send me a letter, saying I have to hire a lawyer for my citizenship case. I send them a letter telling them to stick their citizenship, I have lived 21 years without their citizenship, I can live another 21 years without their citizenship. I almost fainted when I received a letter back from them, just to come to the interview without a lawyer. 2 weeks later I was sworn in.  

[Lemon23 400]

On 4/30/2019 at 7:55 PM, Qian said:

I had two very "un-straightforward" cases- filing I-130 while living abroad, and then N-400 under 319B still living in abroad. 

Attorneys did n't take my I-130 case- because "I live abroad, and I can't get it, even I get it, I can't keep it".

It sounded different than what I have learned on USCIS website, so I started everything myself. All went great.

 

I learned from this experience is that if you read through the related info on USCIS site, it will show you the way. Do more search, ask more questions on the forum, then more search, more reading again...

I feel the info is very transparent and the instructions are very clear too.

 

 

 

 

Super agree on this, this is what exactly what we did for my AOS, ROC to N-400 and we saved tons of money without hiring an immigration lawyer.

[sharin 41]

I hired attorney because I didn't want to stress about thinking did I answer questions in the form correctly or not. 
I don't have time or want stress about filing application & making sure all right documents were included or did I miss something. I never received RFE, but I didn't want to stress about situation if RFE was triggered. 

Hiring an attorney does not mean they'll always file correctly, but chances are low since they do this work on a daily basis + good / well reviewed attorneys have multiple paralegal to support them filing applications. 

 

The main factors which really determine hiring an attorney is Individual case profile (Complications / Criminal history), financial situation & time commitment & peace of mind.