NIE - Legal Counsel

Auburn University Procedures

All immigrant and non-immigrant petitions sponsored by Auburn University will be reviewed and submitted to USCIS through the AU designated legal counsel for immigration compliance. Applicants and their hosting AU units will be responsible for all legal fees. All Auburn University employment based non-immigrant and immigrant petitions are petitions for the employer (Auburn) and may be withdrawn at anytime.

Be reminded that ALL Auburn University sponsored immigration petitions related to employment and or permanent residency require specific internal procedures to assure that the paperwork is in compliance with not only US immigration regulations but also with university policies and procedures.

Auburn University faculty, staff, and university representatives are not authorized to sign a USCIS form G-28.
Only the Office of International Education is authorized to sign immigrant and non-immigrant petitions on behalf of the university. Serving as a liaison for the university in such matters is the responsibility of the Office of International Education, 201 Hargis Hall. Attorneys and/or individuals with questions should contact Sue Ann Balch, J.D. at 334-844-4538 or e-mail her balchsa@auburn.edu
All requests for submission of immigration petitions must go through a signature routing approval process on-campus prior to submission to any attorneys. Petitions may be peer reviewed for approval at the discretion of the Provost.
Applications submitted by attorneys on behalf of AU and on behalf of foreign students and scholars for waiver of the two –year home residency requirement must be reviewed and approved by the Office of International Education.
New PERM regulations have made the permanent residency process more complicated. At this time Auburn University does not authorize outside legal counsel to file PERM applications online on behalf of AU. Applications must be submitted on paper for review and submission as appropriate.
Should an individual choose to use an attorney other than the Auburn immigration attorney, there will be an additional fee charged (minimum of $300) for review of all documents prior to their submission to the USCIS and before the university can approve them.

The Office of International Education staff do not act as attorneys or provide legal advice for purposes of immigration to the U.S. Although OIE staff advise non-immigrant students and visiting scholars regarding their status in the U.S., they do not act as attorneys. For legal advice, non-immigrants and immigrants are urged to seek the services of appropriate legal counsel. If you are seeking official AU legal assistance please be aware of the following contact protocols.

To contact the Auburn general counsel, all requests must be channeled through the appropriate department heads, college deans, and provost/president's office.
To contact the Auburn legal counsel on retainer for immigration purposes, be aware that for official Auburn business all such contacts must be channeled through the appropriate department heads and college deans. All services provided by this counsel are based on an hourly fee. Departments and individuals using this service will be directly charged for all services provided.
Use of outside legal counsel for official Auburn business must be approved in writing by the Auburn legal counsel, all fees and charges will be the responsibility of the individual retaining the services unless otherwise approved in writing by the appropriate Auburn representatives.

Mr. Lee Armstrong is Auburn University's General Counsel, 101 Samford Hall, Auburn Univ. AL 36849, Phone 334-844-5176, E-Mail Address armstlf@auburn.edu

Auburn University currently retains the services of Fisher and Phillips LLP in Atlanta, Georgia, as legal counsel for employment immigration services. ANY use of these services requires a guarantee of payment. Should OIE contact Fisher and Phillips on behalf of any individual or department such individuals and/or departments will be responsible for all fees incurred. OIE will not contact attorneys with out expressed written authorization from the applicant and/or commitment from the chairperson of the department involved. Fees and fee schedules may be dependent on the case involved, relationship to the university, and services sought. Auburn and OIE make no claims or otherwise as to fees and costs involved, such information should be sought directly from the attorneys to be used by the applicant. Departments and individuals may directly contact Fisher and Phillips. However, all records and official processing of immigration documentation must be maintained and monitored by the Office of International Education. It is strongly encouraged that all communication between Fisher and Phillips LLP and the Department and/or individual should be copied to the OIE.

Immigration Lawyer Referral Services

When filing for immigration benefits such as employment based work petitions, permanent residency or other similar university sponsored/supported immigration benefits, applicants may use other counsel to prepare the documents. Nevertheless, ALL petitions must be reviewed and submitted to US CIS by the Auburn University designated immigration attorney.

Auburn policy precludes providing referral services to specific legal counsel. Immigrants and non-immigrants seeking legal counsel referrals may wish to contact the following:

Auburn Policy for Inviting Extramural Legal Authorities to Address Issues Related to Immigration

There may be occasion when a School or College, or an individual faculty member may wish to invite a speaker to their seminar series or class to address issues related to immigration. In no way does the Office of International Education wish to limit the ability for faculty to sponsor qualified speakers addressing academic topics. Nevertheless, faculty should be aware that extramural legal council cannot in any way indicate they represent or speak for Auburn University. A department can invite an immigration law expert to talk about immigration issues in general, but not specific to Auburn. In addition, Auburn University does not take requests from immigration lawyers to speak on campus without a sponsoring academic or administrative unit. Out of courtesy, we ask the sponsoring unit to notify the General Counsel and OIE that an immigration law expert will be speaking-- we do not require "pre-approval."

Additional Information