Legal Question in Immigration Law in Pennsylvania

Re: Green card marriage - problems

You asked about what issues are involved in an immigration matter where a person seeking a "green card" married and is currently being abused by a person who believes the marriage is a sham.

It is a convoluted issue and the person involved should have competent counsel that is not beholden to any party.

Of course it is unlawful to marry for the purposes of obtaining legal resident status. But, once a legitimate marriage takes place it is incumbent on the authorities to make prove a marriage is a sham. If the marriage is legitimate, as this one sounds, then even though it began as a marriage of convenience it should be upheld.

Once a party has passed the two year period and has begun the paperwork for her permanent resident status then the threat should be a non-issue. Moreover, persons, including immigrants, are explicity protected at law from abusive situations in relationships. She should be documenting all incidents and should make formal complaints regarding them, again, with the help of a lawyer.

Regarding the fact that her abuser is her husband's employer. Employment law specifically provides for anti-retaliation where legitimate complaints are leveled against a person at an employer. Many laws even provide for statutory damages.

To solve this situation the individual must seek the counsel and advice of a competent attorney or attorneys skilled in both immigration law and employment law. She should also seek counselling with a group providing assistance to women in abusive relationships. I don't your locality so I can't make a recommendation, but your local social services agencies will be able to help.

SHe has options, but she needs to meet with professionals that can help her explore those options fully.

Regards,

Roger Traversa

email: [email protected]

phone: 215.279.8940

Re: Green card marriage - problems

Sometimes a simple answer or a course of action can be provided over the web for immigration cases. This is not one of those times. You do have the marriage fraud issue working against you (the intent for fraud purposes is determined at the inception of the marriage). However, you have abuse, you have criminal activity, you have probably have a malpractice claim against her current attorney and maybe a signficant more number of claims. Your friend will certainly have a huge burden to overcome with the fraud and even by the fact that the abuser is not her husband (does he say or do anything to help the situation). But you definitely need to take an appointment with a competent immigration attorney to discuss this in detail. You can contact my office if you are comfortable traveling to NJ.