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H-1B, L-1 & Strategic Visa Planning in a High-Scrutiny Era

Heightened adjudication is turning routine H-1B and L-1 petitions into denials. Evaluate visa options against actual eligibility, respond to RFEs in a way that strengthens the petition, and build employer immigration plans that survive shifting policy.

2026-09-28 13:00:00

Program Details

2026-09-28 13:00:00

2026-09-28 13:00:00

2h CLE Credits

Program Details

2026-09-28 13:00:00

Program Details

2026-09-28 13:00:00

Over 1,000+ webinars

2026-09-28 13:00:00

Course Overview

The petition hasn't changed. The adjudicator has

2026-09-28 13:00:00

Employment-based visa practice is being judged in a high-scrutiny environment. The filing that cleared last year now draws a Request for Evidence. Recent adjudication trends have shifted where petitions fail, and cap pressure makes alternatives a first question, not a fallback.

Choose H-1B where L-1 fits better, and eligibility becomes the fight. Miss a denial trigger at drafting, and you answer for it in the RFE. Treat the cap as the only path, and the alternatives close. Plan one hire at a time, and workforce continuity breaks.

You leave with a framework for comparing H-1B and L-1 on a real fact pattern. You leave with an RFE response that strengthens the petition instead of restating it. And you leave with a long-term immigration plan an employer client can act on. Judgment calls, not doctrine.

Format

CLE Credit

2h CLE Credits

Level

Intermediate

Length

2

Key topics that will be covered

01
Cap Strategy Alternatives
Work the H-1B cap as one option among several, and know which alternative categories to reach for when it closes.
02
H-1B Versus L-1
Compare H-1B and L-1 eligibility side by side and select the category the client’s facts can actually support.
03
Denial Trigger Patterns
Read recent adjudication trends for the denial triggers that decide petitions, and adjust filings as policy shifts.
04
RFE Response Strategy
Answer a Request for Evidence so it strengthens the petition rather than restating what was already filed.
05
Long-Term Visa Planning
Map an employer’s future visa needs across years rather than filings, so workforce continuity survives a bad cycle.
06
Employer Risk Advisory
Advise employers on ongoing nonimmigrant planning while identifying and mitigating the immigration-related risks they carry.

Program schedule

clock 1:00 pm - 2:00 pm EST

H-1B, L-1 & Alternative Visa Strategies in a High-Scrutiny Environment

This session provides a practical framework for advising employers and foreign national employees on nonimmigrant visa strategy in today’s heightened adjudication environment. Participants will learn how to evaluate available visa options, anticipate adjudication challenges, and strengthen petitions through proactive planning and effective responses to agency scrutiny.

Karen-Lee PollakKaren-Lee Pollak
clock 2:10 pm - 3:10 pm EST

Strategic Immigration Planning for Employers

This session focuses on helping employers develop long-term immigration strategies to support hiring and retaining international talent. Participants will explore practical approaches to planning future visa needs, managing immigration-related risks, and advising clients as employment-based immigration policies and adjudication practices continue to evolve.

Karen-Lee PollakKaren-Lee Pollak
Karen-Lee Pollak

Karen-Lee Pollak

Pollak PLLC

Karen-Lee Pollak

Karen-Lee Pollak

Pollak PLLC

Karen-Lee Pollak is the Managing Attorney of Pollak PLLC, an immigration law firm with offices in Dallas, Texas, and Fort Lauderdale, Florida. She provides comprehensive immigration counsel to multinational corporations, small and mid-sized businesses, investors, families, and individuals on a broad range of employment- and family-based immigration matters. Her practice encompasses immigrant and nonimmigrant visa petitions, corporate immigration compliance, immigration policy development, and federal immigration litigation under the Administrative Procedure Act. As an immigrant herself, Ms. Pollak understands that immigration decisions are both legal and deeply personal, and she works closely with clients to deliver practical, timely, and strategic solutions.

Education & Credentials

Ms. Pollak earned her law degree from the University of the Witwatersrand in Johannesburg, South Africa, where she studied law from 1987 to 1993. She was admitted to the Supreme Court of South Africa before immigrating to the United States in 1995 and subsequently qualified to practice law in both California and Texas. She is a member of the State Bar of California and the State Bar of Texas.

Recognition & Leadership

Ms. Pollak has been consistently recognized as one of Texas's leading immigration attorneys. She has been ranked by Chambers and Partners in the Global Guide to the World's Leading Lawyers (USA) since 2021 and was included in the Chambers Regional Spotlight Guide (Texas) in 2025. She has also been recognized in D Magazine's Best Lawyers in Dallas for Immigration Law annually from 2014 through 2025 and has been selected to Texas Super Lawyers each year from 2018 through 2025. Earlier in her career, she was named a Texas Rising Star (2009), received the Dallas Top 50 Women Lawyers Award from the Texas Diversity Council (2018), was recognized by Corporate INTL Magazine as Immigration Law Firm of the Year in Texas (2013), and was featured in Newsweek's Leaders in Immigration Law Showcase (2012). Before founding Pollak PLLC, Ms. Pollak served as Chair of the Immigration Practice in the Dallas office of one of the world's largest law firms, where she led a nationally recognized immigration practice.

Professional Involvement

Ms. Pollak is an active member of the American Immigration Lawyers Association, the Dallas Bar Association, where she serves on the Community Involvement Committee, and the Texas Women Lawyers Association. She is committed to pro bono service through Genesis Women's Shelter Pro Bono Immigration Services and the Military Assistance Project. In addition to her professional and community involvement, Ms. Pollak is a frequent speaker and author on immigration law and publishes When Immigration Matters, a blog that provides commentary, practical guidance, and updates on developments in immigration law, policy, and practice.

Experience

Ms. Pollak represents clients in a wide range of employment-, investment-, family-, and litigation-based immigration matters. Her federal litigation experience includes Administrative Procedure Act cases involving delayed immigration adjudications, wrongful denials of naturalization applications, and permanent residency matters. Her corporate practice includes advising businesses on employment-based immigration strategies, corporate compliance, and securing visas for multinational executives, investors, and skilled professionals. She has successfully represented publicly traded companies, entrepreneurs, researchers, professional athletes, writers, entertainers, and families seeking immigration benefits through employment, investment, extraordinary ability, and family-based pathways. Her experience spans numerous visa classifications, including L-1, O-1, P, E, EB-2, and EB-3 matters, as well as complex family-based immigration cases.
Karen-Lee Pollak

Karen-Lee Pollak

Pollak PLLC

Karen-Lee Pollak is the Managing Attorney of Pollak PLLC, an immigration law firm with offices in Dallas, Texas, and Fort Lauderdale, Florida. She provides comprehensive immigration counsel to multinational corporations, small and mid-sized businesses, investors, families, and individuals on a broad range of employment- and family-based immigration matters. Her practice encompasses immigrant and nonimmigrant visa petitions, corporate immigration compliance, immigration policy development, and federal immigration litigation under the Administrative Procedure Act. As an immigrant herself, Ms. Pollak understands that immigration decisions are both legal and deeply personal, and she works closely with clients to deliver practical, timely, and strategic solutions.

Education & Credentials

Ms. Pollak earned her law degree from the University of the Witwatersrand in Johannesburg, South Africa, where she studied law from 1987 to 1993. She was admitted to the Supreme Court of South Africa before immigrating to the United States in 1995 and subsequently qualified to practice law in both California and Texas. She is a member of the State Bar of California and the State Bar of Texas.

Recognition & Leadership

Ms. Pollak has been consistently recognized as one of Texas's leading immigration attorneys. She has been ranked by Chambers and Partners in the Global Guide to the World's Leading Lawyers (USA) since 2021 and was included in the Chambers Regional Spotlight Guide (Texas) in 2025. She has also been recognized in D Magazine's Best Lawyers in Dallas for Immigration Law annually from 2014 through 2025 and has been selected to Texas Super Lawyers each year from 2018 through 2025. Earlier in her career, she was named a Texas Rising Star (2009), received the Dallas Top 50 Women Lawyers Award from the Texas Diversity Council (2018), was recognized by Corporate INTL Magazine as Immigration Law Firm of the Year in Texas (2013), and was featured in Newsweek's Leaders in Immigration Law Showcase (2012). Before founding Pollak PLLC, Ms. Pollak served as Chair of the Immigration Practice in the Dallas office of one of the world's largest law firms, where she led a nationally recognized immigration practice.

Professional Involvement

Ms. Pollak is an active member of the American Immigration Lawyers Association, the Dallas Bar Association, where she serves on the Community Involvement Committee, and the Texas Women Lawyers Association. She is committed to pro bono service through Genesis Women's Shelter Pro Bono Immigration Services and the Military Assistance Project. In addition to her professional and community involvement, Ms. Pollak is a frequent speaker and author on immigration law and publishes When Immigration Matters, a blog that provides commentary, practical guidance, and updates on developments in immigration law, policy, and practice.

Experience

Ms. Pollak represents clients in a wide range of employment-, investment-, family-, and litigation-based immigration matters. Her federal litigation experience includes Administrative Procedure Act cases involving delayed immigration adjudications, wrongful denials of naturalization applications, and permanent residency matters. Her corporate practice includes advising businesses on employment-based immigration strategies, corporate compliance, and securing visas for multinational executives, investors, and skilled professionals. She has successfully represented publicly traded companies, entrepreneurs, researchers, professional athletes, writers, entertainers, and families seeking immigration benefits through employment, investment, extraordinary ability, and family-based pathways. Her experience spans numerous visa classifications, including L-1, O-1, P, E, EB-2, and EB-3 matters, as well as complex family-based immigration cases.

Credits by state

AK2.0
AL2.0
AR2.0
AZ2.0
CA2.0
CO2.0
CT2.0
DC2.0
DE2.0
FL2.0
GA2.0
HI2.0
IA2.0
ID2.0
IL2.0
IN2.0
KS2.0
KY2.0
LA2.0
MA2.0
MD2.0
ME2.0
MI2.0
MN2.0
MO2.4
MS2.0
MT2.0
NC2.0
ND2.0
NE2.0
NH120.0
NJ2.0
NM2.0
NV2.0
NY2.0
OH2.0
OK2.5
OR2.0
PA2.0
RI2.5
SC2.0
SD2.0
TN2.0
TX2.0
UT2.0
VA2.0
VT2.0
WA2.0
WI2.0
WV2.4
WY2.0

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MCLE Credits

Alabama
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Arkansas
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California
Approved
Colorado
Pending
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Approved
Delaware
Pending
District of Columbia
No Required
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Approved
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Approved
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Approved
Idaho
Pending
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Pending
Iowa
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Kansas
Pending
Kentucky
Pending
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Pending
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Pending
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No Required
Massachusetts
No Required
Michigan
No Required
Minnesota
Pending
Mississippi
Pending
Missouri
Approved
Montana
Pending
Nebraska
Pending
Nevada
Pending
New Hampshire
Approved
New Jersey
Approved
New Mexico
Approved
New York
Approved
North Carolina
Pending
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Approved
Ohio
Approved
Oklahoma
Pending
Oregon
Pending
Pennsylvania
Approved
Rhode Island
Pending
South Carolina
Pending
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No Required
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Approved
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Approved
Utah
Pending
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Approved
Virginia
Not Eligible
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Approved
West Virginia
Pending
Wisconsin
Approved
Wyoming
Pending

Alabama

Requirements

The Alabama State Bar MCLE Commission requires attorneys to complete 12 credits, including 1 ethics, by December 31 of each year. All credits must be reported by February 15 of the following year. A maximum of 12 credits, including 1 ethics credit, may be carried over for 1 year only.  

Formats

  • Attorneys can earn unlimited “live” credit through live seminars, live webcasts, and co-sponsored locations with MyLAWCLE-Alabama approved programs
  • Attorneys are limited to 6 credits per compliance period of “online” programs through MyLAwCLE On-Demand programs