Legal Question in Business Law in California

Re: Employing Illegal Immigrants

A lawyer can't advocate breaking the law. Buying a company and continuing to employ known undocumented employees would be just that.

My suggestion for an immediate and free starting point would be to ask another LawGuru question, this time under the topic heading of Immigration Law. I assume we have such a topic; I don't participate in it. Ask about legalizing the guys.

I do know a tiny bit about the topic, enough to know that there are special visas that allow people with critical skills to enter the country and work legally. An immigration spacialist could tell you, more or less, your chances of getting such a visa, how long it would take, and what it would cost. He or she could also inform you of the risks and costs of being caught with an "illegal" on your payroll.

With this information, you could make a better-informed decision, which might include making part of the purchase price contingent upon getting one or both employees visaed within X or Y months.

Re: Employing Illegal Immigrants

What attorney Whipple said is spot on, I might add that it appears your prospective employee might be committing identity theft if he's using a bogus SSN -- they vigorously prosecute such cases and he'll get a stretch in federal prison in addition to being deported.