Amy R Novick

My wife needed legal help for a 2-yr home restriction waver. Upon meeting with Amy, we already had some idea about the likelihood/risk facing our case through consultation with other lawyers. We decided to stick with Amy for 2 key reasons: First, DC is a highly dense market for immigration lawyers an...d Amy's firm appeared both competitive and reasonably affordable. Second, through consultation with Amy on the phone, we were impressed with her attention to details, which proved critical as the case progressed. We would work entirely on the phone, occasionally on Skype, without much difficulty. Just the number of pages of primary evidence - mostly doctor letters that Amy drafted and edited - and personal statements alone was probably worth the entire legal fee we paid. On top of that, I believe that the case she prepared, including circumstantial and secondary evidence, left no stone unturned. The last part was probably critical since we had friends whose cases were similar to ours but failed due to inadequate preparation. USCIS and the State Dept took nearly all of the 8 months allowed to come back to us, thankfully, with an approval. Amy kept in touch with us throughout the waiting period and only closed the case once we had the paperwork in hand. Her professionalism was an important assurance for us during the entire process. With her help we always knew that we did all we could for our case.

Our encounter with Amy started shortly after we received a devastating GC denial letter from USCIS. The letter requested me leave the US in a month stating that I failed to provide any documents that could waive my J1's 2-Year home residency requirements. I came to the states as an Au Pair from China.... Unlike most Au Pairs from other countries, my J-1 visa had a 2-Year home residency requirement that typically applies to exchange scholars sponsored with government funding or anyone with special skills. None of the above applied to me. Therefore after I was able to change my visa from J-1 to F-1 status, I really didn't think too much after I married my husband. Like many of my friends, I thought I could prepare all the paperwork myself and I couldn't be more wrong. I started dialing everyone on the list. I narrowed down my list to only two lawyers in DC. Amy was one of them. We went with our family lawyer to both consultations in hopes of deciding on one. We didn't choose Amy first because the other lawyer offered a cheaper rate. Our case required a couple steps. First was the advisory opinion from the department of the state that states I am not subject to 2-Year requirements; then we had to refile for my permanent resident status. I also had to apply for a J-1 waiver from Chinese embassy. My lawyer couldn't be of much help since the application process was all in Chinese. This lawyer was not proactive. When I asked him a few questions regarding my case, instead of advising me based on his professional opinion, he would ask me if he should or should not proceed. He was not good with communication and that made my anxiety even worse. As time went by, I know my confidence in him had gone downhill and I decided to ask Amy to help me with the rest of filing. My husband and family lawyer both expressed concern over changing to a different lawyer at this point but I knew I couldn't work with him any more. After working with Amy for about 6 months, I received my GC in Dec last year right before Christmas. It couldn't have been a better Christmas gift for us. There are three main reasons why Amy was a success for us and why you should hire her too. First and for most, she is extremely thorough in preparing a winning case. A friend of mine once complained about the fact that her immigration lawyer went with them to GC interview but seemed to know nothing about their case, it made them furious and never wanted to refer him. Amy made sure she knew every aspect of our case and she found a big issue with our last filling that was somehow missed by USCIS. My husband's income wasn't enough and we needed a co-sponsor. Once we got that figured out, she finally considered it ready to be resubmitted. She was right. Secondly, she is very good with communication. I believe a great lawyer knows how to address clients' needs by providing timely correspondence. Amy never had me waiting for a response more than a day. Any questions that we had, she made sure to answer promptly. Unlike some lawyers who have their associates to correspond with clients to great extent, Amy emailed or talked to us directly for the most part. We felt our case was being taken care of by an immigration lawyer that actually cared about us and her work. Last but not least, she is such a compassionate lawyer who also addressed our emotional needs. One thing that my previous lawyer never provided was compassion. After all, not everyone is capable of compassion. We could feel that for her, we were not just another client but someone who needed her help and someone she was ready to help. She listened to our stories and recognized our anxiety and fear. She was kind and capable. It was such a great experience with her that we couldn't be happier that she was our lawyer. We were very fortunate to have her and I hope if you are in need of great help facing a devastating immigration situation like we did, Amy is certainly the one to go for. We truly recommend her

I've worked with Amy on two matters. The first was a petition for adjustment of status for my husband. It was relatively straightforward, but it was obviously of the utmost importance to us, and I (myself an attorney) was nervous. Amy's calm competence did wonders for my state of mind. She was hi...ghly responsive and addressed all of our questions. The insights she shared ensured that we sailed smoothly through the process. The second matter was a complex H-1B visa application for the Executive Director of a nonprofit organization. I am the President of the Board, and as soon as the issue came up, I knew that we would have to take it to Amy. She was terrific. She did the research needed to figure out how to best position our application, and she was a source of good advice throughout. I have no doubt that our petition was granted because of her fine work. I have already recommended her to others, and I will continue to do so.

Amy helped me with my student and exchange visa questions. She was extremely knowledgeable and was able to resolve all my questions promptly. She went above and beyond what was required to help me. Navigating all the issues and paperwork involved with visas can be daunting, but Amy always made me... feel comfortable and helped allay a lot of my worries and fears. She never made me feel rushed or like "just another immigration client". I will definitely be using Amy's services in the future.