Michael has over 40 years of experience, having retired from Fragomen in 2016, after 26 years there as an equity partner. While at Fragomen, Michael was responsible for leading the firm’s representation of a diverse group of clients across many industries, including large multinational corporations, small, mid-level and start-up companies, and individuals and investors. He practices exclusively in immigration and nationality law, with emphasis on risk management for global immigration programs, including U.S. Department of Labor and I-9 compliance, immigration due diligence for corporate restructuring, and immigration policy development. While at the firm, Michael was Co-Chair of the EB-5 Working Group, Co-Chair of the Legal Affairs and Risk Management Committee; and a member of the firm's Finance and Global Compliance Committees. Michael also served as a member of Fragomen's Executive Committee and as the firm’s General Counsel.

Prior to joining Fragomen in 1990, Michael was a founding partner of Campbell, Patrick & Chin. Before that, he served as a Special Assistant U.S. Attorney and Chief of the Immigration Unit of the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New York, where he represented the Immigration and Naturalization Service, the Department of State, the Department of Labor, and other federal agencies in the federal courts. Prior to joining the U.S. Attorney's Office, Michael was an Assistant Corporation Counsel for The City of New York, serving in the Special Trials Unit of the Torts Division.

Representative Experience

• Represented and defended a number of multi-national firms under investigation for regulatory enforcement of immigration violations. Conducted numerous audits for large and medium companies to ensure that they were compliant with regulatory statutes
• Advised numerous clients in the establishment of in-house immigration programs to support Basic Pilot/E-Verify programs
• Worked with multi-billion dollar company to spin off a major division as a separate international company, assisting with due diligence and immigration compliance for the entire transition

Professional Accomplishments

Professional Memberships

• Member, American Bar Association
• Member, International Bar Association
• Member, Federal Bar Council (Trustee 2006-2012)
• Member, Federal Bar Association 
• Member, American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA)
• Member, American Foreign Lawyers Association (Treasurer 2004-2009)
• Member, New York State Bar Association
• Member, New York County Lawyers Association
• Member, American Inn of Court, New York Chapter
• Former Member, Second Circuit Committee on Admissions and Grievances
• Member, Advisory Board, World Policy Institute
• Former Chair, Federal Bar Association's Immigration Law Section (1989-1992)
• Former Chair, New York City Chapter of the American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA) (1990-1991)
• Former Co-chair, Committee on Immigration Litigation of the Commercial and Federal Litigation Section of the New York State Bar Association (2008-2011)

Faculty Positions

• Member of the Faculty, National Institute for Trial Advocacy (NITA), Hofstra University
• Member of the Faculty, Intensive Trial Advocacy Program (ITAP), Cardozo School of Law

Publications and Lectures

• Formerly authored bimonthly immigration column in the New York Law Journal and monthly column in the Metropolitan Corporate Counsel
• Frequent speaker on business immigration topics before Bar Associations, international trade organizations and human resource groups, including:
• Council for Global Immigration (CFGI)
• Society for Human Resources Management (SHRM)
• American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA) 
• Federal Bar Council

Awards

• Lawdragon's Top 20 Lawyers in Immigration Law - 2016
• Chambers USA: America's Leading Business Lawyers - 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016
• International Who's Who of Corporate Immigration Lawyers - 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016
• HR Executive - The Nation's Most Powerful Employment Attorneys - Top 20 for Immigration Law - 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016
• Best Lawyers In America - 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014. 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018
• Super Lawyers - 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014.2015, 2016, 2017, 2018
• Dean's Award for Distinguished Hofstra Law School Alumni - 2000

Pro Bono Work

• Pioneered the development of Fragomen's pro bono practice, including immigration advocacy and support for Sanctuary for Families, a New York-based charity that provides crisis intervention, emergency and transitional housing, individual and group counseling, job readiness and mentoring programs to victims of domestic violence.
• Working with Austin Fragomen, led the establishment of Fragomen’s partnership with the New York City Bar Justice Center, providing support to low-income families with immigration matters through appointment of a Fragomen Fellow.

Bar Admissions

New York

Court Admissions

U.S. Supreme Court

U.S. Court of Appeals, Second Circuit

U.S. Court of Appeals, Seventh Circuit

U.S. District Court, Southern District of New York

U.S. District Court, Eastern District of New York

Education

Hofstra University School of Law, J.D., Law Review and President of Law Fellows, 1978

Syracuse University, B.A., cum laude, 1975