JoAnn Lois Barten

An immigrant without legal status has a tremendous fear of being discovered by others, especially the government. Naturally, filing for legal status was going to be a huge leap of faith for our family. Thankfully we found JoAnn Barten early in our process. From the moment we first met her, we knew it would all work out in the end. She was very professional, listened to our concerns, and assured us that while the process was long and tedious, it would be well worth it. Whenever I had questions, she or the office staff were always willing to assist. They were prompt in responding to phone calls, and I nver felt alone. I am grateful that our family will be reuinted very soon, thanks to her very hard work and dedication to helping others.

I highly recommend JoAnn Barton of Barton Law Offices. We are a small business and this was our first time hiring an employee from outside the U.S. Quite frankly we knew nothing. We didn’t know where to begin other than to find an immigration attorney. Thank goodness, we found JoAnn. I remember the anticipation of our first meeting. We were excited about our future employee and overwhelmed at the same time. Our anxiety levels were high. Could we accomplish the monumental immigration paperwork in the proper order? JoAnn immediately put us at ease and walked us through the entire process. What initially seemed incomprehensible was now a goal that could be attained. The goal was to hire and have our new employee in the U.S. and JoAnn and her team helped us make it possible.

Barten law firm is an exceptional law firm! Joann answered all my questions to the best of her ability and was confident in her ability to represent my case. Her confidence, her knowledge, her honesty helped me understand the immigration process better. She represented us well and I am very satisfied in her professionalism and work ethic. These are abilities not true in all lawyers. Barten law firm is well worth the money and time you will spend on a lawyer. I recommend Joann to everyone.

JoAnn was very thorough during the my consultation spelling out the process and the fees for 2 different scenarios to get my fiance to the U.S. from the Philippines. I look forward to working with her to get through this process.

When my now-husband shared with me that he was an undocumented immigrant, I had no idea how that would affect our lives. All I knew was that eventually, we would need a solid and trustworthy legal attorney to guide us through the process. We started our family immigration case with JoAnn Barten right after we were married in 2010. With JoAnn's help, we filed an I-130 Petition, a Visa Application, and an I-601 Waiver Application so that my husband could be granted legal permanent residency. Since my husband had no criminal record, it was a relief when she told us that our case would be fairly straightforward and that she would work in a timely manner as long as we provided the required documents so she could file our case with the US government. True to her word, JoAnn began working and preparing the applications for our case as soon as we had turned in the proper documents. Because I am a fairly organized person and my husband and I wanted things to go as smoothly as possible, we made sure to gather all the documents we needed as soon as we could so that we wouldn't lose valuable time and she wouldn't have to be waiting on us. She was very organized and straightforward, giving us clear and concise lists of items and documents that would be essential supporting evidence for each stage in our case. When we needed to gather affidavits of personal friends and family, JoAnn was very open to answering any questions they might have had so that they could feel confident in turning in an accurate document that would help our case be stronger. The I-601 Waiver was definitely the most complex part of the case to put together and I know we wouldn't have been able to adequately prepare for it without JoAnn's knowledge and guidance. We had heard from others (and she agreed) that it was this stage in particular when most people would receive denials or requests for more evidence so we needed to gather as much evidence as we could to show that I needed my husband to be granted residency so we could be together and live our lives without constantly living in the shadows and worrying about deportation. On a related note, she advised my husband only drive when absolutely necessary while the case was in progress to minimize the possibility of him getting pulled over and we heeded that advice whole-heartedly. My husband has been a permanent resident for the past three years and will become eligible for US citizenship in a few months. We couldn't have come this far without the dedication and diligence of JoAnn Barten and her staff. Our interactions and meetings were always productive and they really worked hard so my husband and I could have the most positive outcome for our case. They were wonderful to work with and I hope they continue to help those in need of their immigration services.

Attorney Barten was the first attorney I met with that outlined a reasonable strategy to file the Petition for my children, which has been a case that other attorneys in Missouri, where I lived, lost interest in when it was clear that wasn't easy. She was calm and patient, but very efficient and responsive. I bombarded her with questions and she always remained professional and took great care to ensure that my queries were answered. Attorney Barten was always available and prompt whenever I needed her. My petition was filed successfully, and I am extremely pleased because the case of one of my children is already in consular proceedings, and very close to come to this country.

I am a married international graduate student at Iowa State University, working on research and technology, who have consulted JoAnn Barten on several occasions regarding my immigration status, and preparing for visits to the US consulate in our home country. She is also assisting me with my ultimate strategy for Immigration to the US. My wife was also an international student and currently an H1B holder, who was also assisted by JoAnn in the process of her transition from student to a work permit. To the moment our immigration issues have been resolved positively, which I can attribute to the deep and comprehensive knowledge on immigration matters that Ms. Barten has clearly demonstrated. Her concepts are realistic, and her ability to identify the weaknesses and strengths of our case allowed us to find a strategy to have our visas and work permits filed, processed, and issued successfully. JoAnn Barten has always been extremely efficient, polite, and has attended to our requests on a timely manner. She has been effective at communicating with us, and is supported by a very capable and friendly staff. I highly recommend this attorney, which we have found to be very capable of attending the needs of the demanding clients of a University Town such as Ames.

Green Card through Marriage Before I came to JoAnn Barten office a lot of people recommended her. I made an appointment with her and I came with my future wife for that appointment. She provided us with very useful and professional information. JoAnn and her team organized all our information to make sure that all it was right, including my Immigration forms and USCIS documents she update us as necessary. When we received a notice for the interview, we had a last appointment with JoAnn. She gave us confidence and advice. She went with us to the interview and we were successful ! Thank you JoAnn for your professionalism and your experience, and knowledge. We highly recommend you for anyone considering going through this process.

At the start of our application for an H1B Work Visa for our employee, the process seemed daunting! JoAnn was able to make the process much easier and streamlined than it first appeared. We appreciated her help and professional approach and application was a success. I would definately recommend JoAnn to any of my clients and colleagues.