Immigration Attorney, Legal Review

Fragomen•Pittsburgh, PA

1d•Onsite

About The Position

The Co-Located Immigration Attorney conducts an independent final legal review of designated employment-based immigration applications and petitions prepared through the Case Processing and Production Operations Center (CPPOC) and approved by the originating legal team. After determining that a filing is accurate, complete, legally supportable, and ready for submission, the attorney signs Form G-28 and other applicable attorney signature fields before the filing is mailed to USCIS. The role is part of a model that distinguishes filing preparation by CPPOC, substantive legal assessment and approval by the originating legal team, and independent review and signing decisions by the Co-Located Immigration Attorney. The originating legal team retains the client relationship, case strategy, and post-filing case activity. The attorney must exercise independent professional judgment and may question, stop, return, or decline to sign a filing that does not meet legal, factual, ethical, or quality standards. The position requires working on-site at the CPPOC site as needed to review assembled packages and provide wet-ink signatures. It also involves collaboration with legal teams, maintaining appropriate review records, following professional responsibility and operational controls, and coordinating after signature while preserving clear case-ownership boundaries.

Requirements

Juris Doctor degree from an accredited law school.
Active admission in any U.S. jurisdiction and eligibility to remain in good standing.
3–5+ years of relevant business immigration experience as an attorney.
Working knowledge of Form G-28, relevant USCIS forms, attorney signature requirements, and responsibilities associated with appearing before USCIS.
Demonstrated ability to exercise independent legal judgment in a deadline-driven, production-oriented environment.
Ability to identify material legal, factual, documentary, and procedural issues in complex filing packages.
Ability to work on-site at the CPPOC site as required for assembled-package review and wet-ink signature.
Strong written and verbal communication skills.
Sound escalation judgment.
High standards of confidentiality and professional ethics.

Nice To Haves

Experience reviewing U.S. immigration filings, preferably employment-based petitions and applications submitted to USCIS.
Experience with employment-based non-immigrant and immigrant visa matters.
Experience in an immigration law firm, legal operations function, shared services environment, or centralized case-preparation model.
Experience reviewing work prepared by centralized production or case-processing teams.
Familiarity with filing deadlines, premium processing, USCIS notices, and post-filing workflows.
Experience applying legal quality controls, risk-based review protocols, and escalation procedures.

Responsibilities

Conduct the level of independent final legal review required by Firm Professional Responsibility Counsel for each assigned filing.
Review the originating legal team’s recorded approval, case owner, issue-focused handoff, material case history, filing deadline, and designated legal contact.
Confirm that the filing is sufficiently supported by the provided information and documentation and is appropriate for attorney signature.
Identify material inconsistencies, omissions, unsupported representations, legal concerns, and discrepancies between the approved version and assembled package.
Obtain clarification, information, or documentation as needed to make an independent signing decision.
Stop, return, or decline to sign filings with unresolved concerns, and escalate professional responsibility or ethical issues through approved channels.
Verify that Form G-28 correctly identifies the signing attorney and contains accurate contact and bar-admission information.
Confirm attorney signature requirements for each form and sign Form G-28 and other required attorney fields in wet ink only after completing the required review.
Follow Firm-approved procedures for matters where attorney information must be supplied before a client signs, including guidance on pre-entered attorney information approved by Firm Professional Responsibility Counsel.
Release filings to CPPOC only after attorney review and signature requirements are satisfied.
Work with the responsible attorney or designated legal-team contact to resolve final-review questions.
Return substantive changes to the originating legal team for renewed review and approval before signing.
Maintain clear accountability boundaries for legal assessment, filing preparation, independent final review, signature, and post-filing ownership.
Provide constructive feedback on recurring handoff, documentation, quality, or process issues affecting signing readiness.
Confirm that printed and assembled packages correspond to the versions approved by the originating legal team.
Apply Firm-approved review checklists, controls, and professional responsibility guidance.
Return signed packages for reconciliation of original signed pages against the approved version before mailing.
Maintain an appropriate record of reviews, questions, responses, signing decisions, and returned or declined filings.
Participate in quality reviews, pilot assessments, and control testing for the co-located attorney model.
Identify process improvements that support quality and timeliness without reducing the sufficiency or independence of attorney review.
Ensure the filing record identifies the originating legal-team case owner responsible for subsequent case activity.
Remain reasonably available for questions about the attorney’s review or signature while the originating legal team retains ongoing substantive case ownership.
Follow approved procedures for planned absences, urgent USCIS contact, attorney coverage, and required changes in representation.
Respond to administrative inquiries about verifiable or objective information and coordinate complex or substantive inquiries with the designated legal team.