Transcript:

Kleine 

Hello everyone and welcome back to yet another episode of Immigration Nation. I’m your host for today. My name is Kleine and I’m so excited to be here with Erin Lee. Erin, thank you so much for being here today. If you want to just let our listeners know, we’ll be going over today and a little bit about you. And your firm? 

Erin Lee 

Hi Kleine. Thanks so much for having me today on the podcast. Just a little bit about me, I’ve just been in the immigration practice for about. Oh gosh about. 13 years now. I’m located in Escondido, CA in San Diego County, but I, you know. Service people all over the world. 

Speaker 

Old. 

Erin Lee 

Yeah, I do. Kind of everything. Immigration, family based mostly. But some employment based as well. My parents are immigrants. They came in the late 70s. So although I was born here. But, you know, we spoke Korean in the family. So I speak Korean. And then I learned Spanish in high school and funny story about how I got my first job or even landed in immigration in the 1st place was, you know, I graduated in 2009 when. You know the world was not doing so well. The economy went flat and there were no jobs, so there was one opportunity in an immigration law firm that required me to speak Spanish. And so I I think a little bit, I mean. Stretched. But it wasn’t a lie. Yeah, so I said. 

Kleine 

Hey, who doesn’t? Ohh you know, yeah. 

Erin Lee 

I speak Spanish. I took high school Spanish. Got this right like whatever. And so. I fortunately they didn’t test me at this job, but I got the job and then I started practicing immigration law and I was like, oh, wow, OK, I need to really brush up on my Spanish. So I literally brought a – I bought a book. I think it’s on my bookshelf over here somewhere. And I bought a book and I kind of reviewed what I had learned, and then I just started working, you know? With just a lot of Spanish speakers, so I just kind of got immersed and sink or swim clang, you know you you learn you so. I learn immigration law. In Spanish, pretty much and then, but so I can speak like immigration Spanish, but I probably can’t order. At A at a restaurant problem. 

Kleine 

You’re kidding. That was hilarious. 

Erin Lee 

It’s a little strange but. 

Kleine 

Wait, that is so funny. Well, at least what? What better way to immerse yourself than to just say? Yeah, I’m fluent. 

Erin Lee 

Yeah, I’ve had. 

Speaker 

Stay. 

Erin Lee 

Your choice. 

Kleine 

So in this. Episode I really want to get back to the basics. We’re we’ve kind of been all over the place on immigration nation from our start. I think we started like a whole year ago now, which sounds crazy to me. Looking back, but let’s get back to the basics. Just you know, in the immigration realm, there’s so much, you know, there’s non immigrant visas and immigrant visas. And I used to not even know the difference between that. There’s business family. There’s so much. So if I was a client and I had an immigration issue and it I walked into your office and I said, what are the top three things that I should know? About United States immigration, what would you tell me? 

Erin Lee 

Yeah. So much, right. There’s so much information out there. And look, you know, immigration I when I started, not only did I not know Spanish, I didn’t know anything about our immigration system. Actually, I didn’t know the difference between a green card. What’s the difference of green card of being a citizen? And you know, it was crazy. But yeah, there’s so many different little things that one should look out for, but in a general sense, like you said, if we’re going down to the basics, if anybody wants to immigrate to the United States, all you really need to know is, OK, how am I going to do that? You need to have some kind of connection. So there’s family base. So I have a spouse, a parent, a child, a an aunt and uncle, a a a sibling. Some kind of connection. Familial connection can get you here, or an employment base. So an employer company wants to transfer you here or they want to sponsor you. And like you said, there’s non immigrant and immigrant. I only want to be here for a few years. I want to be here. Forever. So it just really depends. And then outside of those two general categories, of course there’s some specialty. Pieces like victims of crimes or domestic violence and and then there’s of course, like asylum and removal. Defense. If you’re in removal proceedings. But in a general sense, that’s just kind of how our immigration system. 

Speaker 

Works. 

Kleine 

Yeah. So much information out there for for me to learn in English, not you in Spanish. What would you say like you kind of see more often on a day-to-day basis in your immigration firm, something that’s kind of really relevant in the San Diego area, maybe or even if it’s? You know, Countrywide, is there something that you see over and over and over or? What’s that? 

Erin Lee 

I can tell you, I guess, because I’m in San Diego and we are at the border. We do see a lot. Of asylum seekers. At the moment, but I would have to say my favorite type of case though that I see often, and I. And I’m like yes, like I love these cases. Are the marriage based ones I get a lot of like, oh, I met somebody where I’m, you know, with the men. Been with my girlfriend or boyfriend for so many years and. We want to. Get married, but we don’t know where. To start, I just. Love those because you know, I get to tell kind of like their love story. So maybe I’m a little bit of a romantic at heart or I watch too many telenovelas or something. But yeah, I love those cases and. You know, yeah. Just telling those stories. I I I know. Through forms and and writing and things like that. But for me it’s like really fun to hear their stories and to. Translate that into kind of their like legal into a. Legal brief so. 

Kleine 

Yeah. 

Erin Lee 

Those are my favorite, and I see those a lot and I like it. 

Kleine 

Those sound really fun. I bet you meet like a bunch of, like, really fun people through that too. 

Speaker 

MHM. 

Erin Lee 

Yeah, so many and you hear so many different stories of how people meet and you know how their stories. And I always like. I’m so intrigued. I love it. 

Kleine 

Oh, that’s awesome. So. So is there anything that you see in your office like when someone comes in and they sit down, that they’re just like, so confused about and I know like with the USCIS website, they’re always coming out with new, you know, news and updates and stuff like that. So of course people can get confused from time to time. But is there anything that, you know, people are? Like. Always confused about when they come and they ask about. 

Erin Lee 

Good question. You know, a lot of there’s a lot of misinformation out there, but also a lot of information out there. So when people say. Like oh I. 

Speaker 

Did a little Google. 

Erin Lee 

Search. I’m like, oh, no, no. No, no. Don’t do that. Don’t fall down that rabbit hole. Yeah, and and with social media, you get you get sometimes, like, 30 seconds. That’s from people saying certain things and. Every case is so different, you know, and everybody tells me, oh, my neighbor and my friend or my this got this and and and almost 100% of the time pretty much it’s like well, their case was totally different. So it’s important to speak to a knowledgeable attorney. You can kind. Of understand your entire situation and people goals are different too, right? Like I said, some people just want to stay for a few years, some people don’t. So it just really is important to. Do like, sit down and do some planning with an attorney who can kind. Of guide you through that process without all the. The noise on Google. 

Kleine 

100% and to our listeners out there, Erin is the best of the best. So go and visit her if you’re local and if not, give her a call. She’s going to let us know her website, phone number and all that good stuff at the end of the episode. But do you have like a favorite story that you always tell your clients or, you know, family members? Like what’s a really great success story? That you’re, like, super proud of. 

Erin Lee 

Yeah. Oh, my, I I feel like I had so many stories. I I I kind of tell myself, maybe I should write a book about them, but. I I think most recently I had a family who who the father was, you know, about to be deported. So we needed to file, you know, motions with the courts and we we fought his case for years. And then finally, just I think last week I received a A, A an order from the Board of Immigration Appeals saying. Will you approve your motion? To dismiss this case, meaning he no longer has any threat of deportation. So he’s just going to be here with his US citizen wife and his children and just continue life, you know, together with his family, without any threat of deportation. And I think for me. You know when they say like oh. My gosh, thank you so much for me, that’s. Just so rewarding and like. It work doesn’t seem like work, honestly, when at that point. 

Kleine 

Oh, that is so. And just last week, too, after years and years and years. 

Erin Lee 

Yeah. 

Kleine 

That is so touching, and I’m sure you get. Stories like that all the time. 

Erin Lee 

Yeah, yeah, I see my clients. Kids grow up and you know it’s it’s really, really. Rewarding and fun. 

Kleine 

That is so awesome, Erin, just to close this out, if you could just say, you know, whatever you want to say to our listeners and, you know, give us a plug for your website, phone number, ways to get in contact with you today. 

Erin Lee 

Yeah, I think what I want to say is, you know, be ready to put up a fight and put in the work. You know, it’s not super easy even with an attorney. We all have to work together. So. But it can be fun and easy, we. Make it as painless as possible so. Yeah, my website is Erin J lee.com, Erin jle.com. Our number is 705-3676 and we’d love to help you out. 

Kleine 

Great. Erin, thank you so much for coming on immigration Nation Today. We appreciate you and we’re definitely looking forward to have you on again sometime. 

Erin Lee 

Thanks, Kleine. Have a great day. 

Speaker 3 

This podcast has been prepared for general information purposes only and is not legal advice. This information create and written as it does not constitute an attorney-client relations.