Leah Spivey

Immigration Attorney at New Orleans, LA

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Excellent Immigration Attorney

Leah was my attorney for my Naturalization process. I was so impressed with her professionalism during the whole process. I started the process with a large firm and quickly realized that it was not a good fit for me. Once I talked to Leah I knew she was the perfect person. My case was not typical and Leah made me feel comfortable and calm about the whole process step by step and was available anytime I needed to talk about the case or had any concerns. I would not hesitate to recommend Leah to anyone needing an immigration attorney.

Highly Recommend!

About Leah

Learn Leah’s areas of practice.

Practice areas

Leah Spivey is an attorney at Gasparian Spivey Immigration – a boutique law firm serving New Orleans, Louisiana and Lafayette, Louisiana. She has over ten years of experience in all areas of immigration law, including labor certifications, employment immigration, family-based immigration, and humanitarian benefits.

She speaks Spanish and Portuguese.

As a dedicated Louisiana immigration attorney, Ms. Spivey has committed her legal career to seeking positive results for clients dealing with the following legal concerns:

• Business immigration
• Academic immigration
• Removal defense
• Asylum and humanitarian immigration
• Nationality
• Non-immigrant visas

Ms. Spivey received her undergraduate degree from Tulane University in 2004 and earned her Juris Doctor from Loyola University New Orleans College of Law in 2009. She spent a year as a New Orleans family law attorney before moving to immigration law in 2010.

Ms. Spivey is a member of the American Immigration Lawyers Association. She is admitted to the Louisiana State Bar Association, the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana, and the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals.

Leah Spivey fights tenaciously for individuals and families seeking to immigrate to the United States for work, education, asylum, research or family reunification.

Licensed for 13 years

State LA

Status Eligible to Practice Law

Acquired 2009

Updated 02/18/2023

We have not found any instances of professional misconduct for this lawyer.

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5.0 / 5.0

49 customer reviews

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Posted by Ian | March 2, 2023

Excellent Immigration Attorney

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Posted by Armine | January 26, 2023

Highly Recommend!

Leah Spivey helped me throughout my citizenship process. Thanks to her and her professional team, the whole process went very smooth for me. Great lawyer.

Posted by Smriti | January 15, 2023

Excellent law firm in town

The best law firm you can ask for. It was a great experience working with them since beginning. Team was Very responsive to questions and delivered information every time and on time. Such a knowledgeable and expertise team. Special thanks to Ms Leah, with whom I was constantly coordinating about my case. Cannot thank enough. I would recommend everyone out there and I myself will not hesitate to contact them in future for legal matters.

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Posted by Wanda | January 11, 2023

Wanda Lester

We choose Leah Spivey to be are attorney she was very helpful and informative She was very knowledgeable in her field of immigration.

Posted by Mercedes | November 4, 2022

Immigration process

Leah kindly guided me throughout the immigration process until I got my citizenship. I can definitely recommend her to anyone in need of legal assistance due to her professionalism, honesty and experience. She was always willing to clear my doubts and inquiries.

Posted by anonymous | August 8, 2022

Gasparian Spivey Immigration

Leah Spivey and her team assisted my family, for the second time, with immigration matters. I am so glad I reached out to Leah for her legal services. Leah and Jimena made the process easy and enjoyable, from filing our forms, to keeping in contact often for updates on our cases from USCIS, to doing a citizenship test-prep review, to literally assisting in any way necessary. Leah is extremely knowledgeable, experienced, and a great immigration lawyer to work with. I cannot recommend her enough. Thank you Leah and Gasparian Spivey Immigration.

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Posted by Phil | August 3, 2022

Highly recommended!

Leah Spivey handled my naturalization case after having been a permanent resident for years. I can't say enough good things about her. Dealing with immigration can be intimidating, but she was very helpful and supportive throughout the entire process. When the waiting time dragged on because of Covid staffing issues, she reached out to our local senator which helped expedite my case. I especially appreciated the mock interview we did beforehand, which was a wonderful way to prepare. The interview went very smoothly and I am now a proud American citizen!

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Posted by Mayron | August 1, 2022

Great experience

Leah Spivey is an excellent attorney and her team really go above and beyond for their clients. I'd trust her with anything, do not hesitate to contact her. She was very straight forward and told me what to expect of the way. Going thru from start to finish, Leah kept me informed of each step and what the options were. Thank you for everything!

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Posted by Isabel | June 29, 2022

Great lawyer

Miss Leah and her team are great professionals, they are always happy to help, on top and keeping you posted about your case,

Posted by Luciano | June 25, 2022

Simply the best

I'm a composer and performer with an extensive career in my original country and I came to the US to do a masters in Music Composition in a prestigious university in Louisiana. After I finished my masters, I started to look for a lawyer to do my process for an O-1 visa and it was quite disappoint to have some of them telling me that my curriculum wasn’t good enough to get the visa because I didn’t have a Nobel prize or a Grammy. I was almost giving up and leaving the country when I finally met with the Gasparian Spivey Law firm and everything changed. They were incredibly helpful with everything, leading me step by step in everything I should do. After I followed their instructions and got all the documents necessary, they sent my process to the USCIS and the positive answer came in less than a week. I totally recommend Gasparian Spivey Law Firm for everybody who needs a working visa her in the US, specially for those who are looking for an O-1 visa, they are simply the best and I will be forever grateful for their help.

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Posted by anonymous | June 16, 2022

Review

Leah Spivey is an excellent attorney. She is very helpful and attentive to your case. She answers emails very fast and provides links and other sources needed to help you understand. Leah Spivey always sends you copies of the documents you receive which is helpful in case you need to show a picture of something to someone. She was very respectful and worked diligently with my case. She also made sure to prep me with hard questions to make sure I was prepared for my interview. Overall, Leah Spivey made sure to explain things I didn’t understand and was very helpful during office hours and sometimes after office hours.

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Posted by Julie | June 16, 2022

Great service and lovely people to work with

Immigration is a long ardous journey so you need a good team to help you. Leah and her team are very resposive and easy to work with. They are with you every step of the way. Their fees are very reasonable and flexible. I would definitely advise anyone looking for immigration services to use this attorney.

Posted by Davide | March 28, 2022

Exceptional immigration lawyer

Leah and her team helped me and my wife during our application for permanent residency. Leah has always been ready to answer rapidly all the questions we had and she has guided us through the entire application process making it understandable and easy. She demonstrated not only a great knowledge of all the legal aspects of the process but also supported us with all supplementary information. Her work conduct and practices are impressive and we recommend her services to everyone who requires a legal assistance and a seamless experience.

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Posted by Matt | March 10, 2022

Best Immigration Attorney

Leah, Jimena & Valeria has done a excellent job on my case. Anyone if you are reading this review, I have done plenty of research before contacting Gasparian Spivey Immigration, If you feel like all the doors are closed and you don’t see any light at the end of the tunnel, you need to contact Leah and her team and you will be in good hands. Thank you again

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Posted by Marco | January 24, 2022

Amazing Help Getting Green Card

I can't say enough good things about Leah! She was incredibly helpful during our green card process. We had plenty of curveballs thrown our way (such as requesting the process be expedited due to family member passing away or my wife's application being separated from mine), and Leah went completely out of her way to help us out. Words can't express how glad I am we found her firm. We didn't feel like we were just a client, we felt like we were her only client. Every time we spoke, Leah would know exactly where we were in the process. And she was always quick to respond every question we had. Plus, she never made us feel like we were bothering her. Leah and her team also stayed on top of filing extension requests. Honestly, having Leah represent us was a relief during a stressful time. Her wealth of knowledge, her contacts in the system, her compassion and responsiveness are priceless. Highly, highly recommend her. I'll forever be grateful for all her help and will definitely contact Leah again if we need any immigration help.

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Posted by anonymous | September 3, 2021

very helpful for a fair price

We needed help with filling in the forms for our permanent residence application for the whole family and writing a petition to apply under the category "National Interest Waiver". After a 60 minutes phone consultation with Leah Spivey, during which she answered all our questions, we were able to finish our application without problems. Later Leah later answered short questions per email and we met her in person a second time after many questions had arisen while waiting for approval. Leah informed us always accurately, she was also informed about the latest changes and updates and she was always helpful and responded quickly until our permanent residency was finally approved. We can definitely recommend Leah Spivey as immigration Attorney. We would work with her again.

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Posted by Estela | July 8, 2021

Excellent experience

After researching different offices in the are, my husband and I decided to chose Leah Spivey since an acquittance who is also a lawyer highly recommended her firm. It was absolutely the best decision because our experience was nothing short of amazing considering how nervous I was going into this process. Leah and everyone in the office we interacted with were very professional and responsive. She would respond to my emails within hours (sometimes within minutes) most of the time and the responses were always clear and detailed. I felt welcomed and comfortable with Leah from the first meeting we had. She is honest, extremely knowledgable and really good at what she does. Despite going through this process during a pandemic, when everything was delayed, their office went above and beyond to assist us. I am very satisfied with Leah and if you want your process to be smooth I highly recommend her.

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Posted by anonymous | May 3, 2021

Excellent legal service

I have thought about hiring someone who had done my friend's case but I chose Leah because I read a lot of good reviews about her service from the internet. She is very responsive, informative and professional. I was very satisfied of her work and I will definitely recommend her to anyone seeking for any immigration help. It took more time but it's all because of the Covid 19 and immigration backed off so long, but once it started moving again, she gave me the update and helped me to prepare the documents.

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Posted by Matilda | May 3, 2021

Knowledgeable, kind and helpful lawyer

Ms Leah and Jimena were absolutely amazing. From the consultation to my interview, Ms. Leah was helpful, kind and very responsive to all my endless questions. She is extremely knowable and calls your situation out for what it is. She will guide you and give you a fair assessment on how you move forward with your case. Her fees were right within my budget, though her service well exceeded what I was charged. I would highly recommend Ms Leah and her team to work on your case and I will continue to recommend her to my personal circle should they require such services.

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Posted by Marvin Pacheco | March 31, 2021

Great lawyer

I'm very grateful with Leah, she is very professional, I recommend with full hands. Thank you Leah a lot

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Cost

Resume

AVVO RATING 10.0 (Superb)

Work Experience

Partner
Gasparian Spivey Immigration
2018 - Present

Attorney
Gasparian Immigration
2017 - 2018

Senior Associate
Ware Immigration
2010 - 2017

Attorney
Stephenson, Chavarri & Lambert, LLC
2009 - 2010

Paralegal/Law Clerk
David Ware & Associates
2006 - 2008

Paralegal
Murov & Ward, LLC
2005 - 2006

View all work experience

Education

Loyola University New Orleans
JD
2009

Tulane University
BA - Bachelor of Arts
2004

Legal Cases

Appeal of U-based Adjustment of Status
Approval

Motion to Reopen
Approval

Associations

New Orleans Bar Association, Immigration Law Committee
Co-chair
2017 - Present

Fifth Circuit Bar Association
Member
2017 - Present

American Immigration Lawyers Association
Member
2010 - Present

Louisiana State Bar Association
Member
2009 - Present

American Immigration Lawyers Association (MidSouth chapter)
USCIS Liaison
2014 - 2016

Hispanic Chamber of Commerce of Louisiana
Member
2010 - 2015

View all associations

Languages Spoken

Spanish

English

Portuguese

Honors and Awards

Rising Star
SuperLawyers
2015

Dean's and Endowed Scholarships
Loyola University New Orleans College of Law
2007

Publications

New Orleans Bar Association blog
The end of DACA doesn't have to be the end of your dream
2017

Materials prepared for presentations at UA
Employment Based Permanent Residence
2016

Materials prepared for LJC Summer School, LSBA
Immigration and Family Law
2015

Powerpoint materials prepared for MAIE
Immigration Update
2000

View all publications

Speaking Engagements

What Does it Mean to be New Orleans, Immigration CLE
Sanctuary City presentation by Office of Mayor Landrieu
2017

Defending Immigrants: An Overview of Crimmigration, Removal Defense, and How to Assist the Undocumented
Defending Immigrants in Immigration Court
2017

UA Students, Scholars, and Staff
Employment Based Permanent Residence
2016

LJC Summer School
Immigration and Family Law
2015

AILA MidSouth
I-751 petitions
2015

Advocacy for Immigrant Juveniles:
Instroduction to Asylum
2015

Pro Bono and Juveniles
Professionalism in the Representation of Special Immigrant Juveniles
2014

MAIE-StudyMississippi Conference
Immigration Update
2014

NAFSA Texas State Meeting
Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals
2013

MAIE 2013 StudyMississippi
Immigration Update
2013

View all speaking engagements

Attorney endorsements

Received (7)

Given (14)

Endorse Leah

Samantha Hechtman

Immigration Attorney | Sep 12
Relationship: Worked together on matter

"I endorse this lawyer. Leah and I worked together for four years. She is a dedicated professional with outstanding legal skills. She is capable of handling the most complex of cases and is a compassionate advocate for her clients."

Carol Pelton

Immigration Attorney | Aug 29
Relationship: Co-worker

"Leah is a former colleague with whom I worked closely in the past. She is a smart and committed advocate for her clients. I endorse Leah."

Erin Hebert

Immigration Attorney | Aug 09
Relationship: Fellow lawyer in community

"I strongly endorse Leah as an immigration attorney. I had the privilege of working with her at her previous firm and I could see how her clients benefited from her wealth of experience, intelligence, and work ethic. I was particularly impressed by how adept she is in various aspects of immigration law: employment, family, and removal defense. Her good humor, kindness, and compassion made her a pleasure to work with and make her an excellent advocate for her clients."

Ari Sauer

Immigration Attorney | Aug 01
Relationship: Fellow lawyer in community

"I have known attorney Leah Spivey since she began practicing immigration law, as we are both active in the leadership of the American Immigration Lawyers Association Mid-South Chapter. She is a respected member of the immigration bar and someone that I reach out to when I have questions about the practices of the New Orleans immigration field office."

Anna Friedberg

Immigration Attorney | Jun 26
Relationship: Fellow lawyer in community

"Ms. Spivey is extremely competent and hard working. Her dedication to her clients goes above and beyond. She is not only thorough but gets great results! She is who I hire and refer to for all of my immigration needs. And on top of it all she's compassionate and kind. Top notch attorney!!"

Marco Balducci

Immigration Attorney | May 28
Relationship: Fellow lawyer in community

"I have known Leah since the time she was in law school. Her dream then was to be an immigration lawyer, and she put in extra hours at the immigration clinic and at immigration trainings to nurture her passion. Since that time, Leah has become an outstanding advocate. She practices law with integrity and sense of public service. She cares deeply about her clients, and she's very smart and has a deep and nuanced knowledge of immigration law. After many years of practice, she still holds on to that same passion for immigration law that motivated her in law school. Highly recommended."

Kathleen Gasparian

Immigration Attorney | Apr 27
Relationship: Other

"I endorse this lawyer. Ms. Spivey has extensive experience in removal, family immigration, and business immigration. She advocates for her clients and exhausts all avenues of relief. She communicates with her clients. She is a great attorney."

View more endorsements

Aaron Rives

Criminal defense

Ari Sauer

Immigration