About Us
Michael Ryvin
Partner
O: (415) 765-0679
F: (415) 358-4928
E: michael@ryvinlaw.com
San Francisco CA
Experience
Michael Ryvin draws on experience with the world’s leading business and specialty immigration practices to help clients secure temporary and permanent visas to the United States based on work, investment and family relationships.
His immigration expertise stems from experience with some of the world’s leading business immigration practices, including Berry Appleman & Leiden (BAL Global) in San Francisco, Littler Mendelson in Silicon Valley, and Ernst & Young in Toronto, Canada (Egan LLP). Before focusing on high-volume corporate immigration work, Michael worked at an AV-Rated immigration and criminal defense firm, focused on removal defense and appellate work. Michael worked his way through law school as an immigration paralegal with a highly organized and successful specialty immigration practice focused on cross-border NAFTA applications.
Licensed to practice law by the State of New York, Michael has been an active member of AILA since 2003. He is a graduate of Cornell University’s School of Industrial and Labor Relations, and the State University of New York at Buffalo, School of Law.
Education
- State University of New York at Buffalo, JD, 2000
- Cornell University, BS, Industrial and Labor Relations, 1997
Admissions
- New York State, 2002
Memberships
- American Immigration Lawyers Association, 2003
Christina Lang Wallace
Partner
O: (703) 531-0790
F: (703) 531-0792
E: christy@ryvinlaw.com
Washington DC & Northern VA
Experience
Christy Wallace brings 14 years of experience practicing immigration law. Her concentration in business immigration has entailed solving complex immigration problems for business clients ranging from Fortune 500 to smaller companies, covering industries such as IT, financial services, construction and engineering, and multi-media production. She also oversees family immigration matters, global transfer issues involving consulates and foreign governmental agencies and works with congressional staff to achieve results on difficult immigration matters.
Christy primarily assists company executives, HR professionals, general counsel and the employees themselves. She has presented immigration-related seminars to HR professionals on employment eligibility verification (E-verify), interrelated payroll issues, and proper record documentation and retention. She has also spoken to relocation companies, executives and in-house counsel on dealing with corporate immigration matters and how to choose immigration counsel.
For several years, Christy taught a course as an adjunct professor to HR managers on Immigration Laws in Recruiting at the Northern Virginia Community College as part of its PHR-certified curriculum. She is an active member of the American Immigration Lawyer’s Association (AILA).
Education
- Wake Forest University School of Law, 1996, Law Review
- University of Virginia, B.A. in Foreign Affairs & Spanish Linguistics, 1992
Admissions
- North Carolina Bar, 1996
- South Carolina Bar, 1996 – 2007
Memberships
- American Immigration Lawyers Association, 1996
- U.S. Council of International Business, Labor & Employment Policy Committee Member, 2003-2004
- Society of Human Resource Managers (SHRM), 2001
Community Service
- EcoStewards Alliance, Finance Board Member, 2003 -2004
- American Immigration Lawyers Association Young Lawyers Division, Conference Coordinator, 2000 – 2001
- American Immigration Law Foundation’s Immigrant Achievement Awards, Washington, D.C., Coordinator, 1996, 2000-2002
- American Immigration Law Foundation’s Annual Benefit, Seattle, Washington, Coordinator, 2000
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Suzette Blackwell
Associate Counsel
O: (571) 214-9286
E: suzette@ryvinlaw.com
Northern Virginia
Experience
Suzette Blackwell is associate counsel to RWG. She has been a licensed attorney for 18 years, and brings extensive experience as an analyst and strategist to the group. Her breadth of knowledge and experience includes solutions and strategies for corporate clients, government agencies, and individuals. She has advised numerous corporate and non-profit clients on formation of business organizations, corporate governance, and federal tax law, and she has served as counsel to clients regarding complex legal issues relating to the Internal Revenue Code, treasury regulations, and revenue rulings, such as: executing a tax free statutory merger, acquiring tax exempt status for US territory banks, and spinning off a division of a publicly traded corporation into a private foundation. She has negotiated and drafted complex contracts, including agreements in connection with obligations of a foreign nation. She also served as an integral part of a legal team in numerous public finance transactions, and in the issuance of over $13.8 billion of securities in a two-year period.
More recently, Suzette has focused on transferring her corporate law experience to the field of business immigration law. With a strong corporate background, Suzette is able to assist her clients across business sectors as they build the professional workforce that they need to remain competitive. However, Suzette’s work in immigration law is not limited to corporate clients. She also represents individuals in family-based immigration matters, including pro bono work in asylum cases. Suzette is passionate about serving indigent clients, and performs volunteer work at non-profit organizations that provide low cost immigration services to those in need.
Education
- University of Baltimore, JD, 1992
- University of Baltimore, BS, Business Administration (Economics), 1986
- Harvard Graduate School of Business, Summer Venture in Management, Cambridge, Massachusetts, 1984
Admissions
- State of Maryland, 1992
- District of Columbia (pending)
Memberships
- American Immigration Lawyers Association
- Women’s Bar Association of the District of Columbia
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Christine Faller
Associate Counsel
O: (703) 531-0790
F: (703) 531-0792
E: christine@ryvinlaw.com
Washington DC & Northern VA
Christine Faller brings to RWG a unique skillset in business immigration matters, having focused for the last 3 years on the most difficult petitions for corporate, small business and individuals: EB-5 Investors, EB-1 Extraordinary Ability and Outstanding Researchers, National Interest Waivers, O-1 Outstanding Ability and Labor Certifications. In addition, she handles routine business immigration matters including H-1B Professionals, E-2 Investors, L-1 Intracompany Transferees and corresponding Multinational Manager green card petitions.
A Georgetown law grad with legal work experience abroad in IP and cross-border business advising on franchise agreements, privacy laws, product registrations in foreign countries and international trade issues, she is well-suited to the diversity of international clients’ corporate issues that our business immigration practice inherently encompasses.
Christine is also able to draw on her experiences living and traveling internationally in Southeast Asia and India and in Europe to understand clients on a personal level for their family immigration matters, as well as the cultural distinctions important to their business needs and practices.
Education
- Georgetown University Law Center, JD, 2009
- Boston College, BA Political Science, 2006
Admissions
- Pennsylvania, 2009
Memberships
- American Immigration Lawyers Association
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Keeran Sangha
Paralegal
O: (415) 765-5124
F: (415) 765-5122
E: keeran@ryvinlaw.com
San Francisco CA
Keeran Sangha has a broad skillset as a UK trained lawyer handling business immigration matters with over 6 years relevant experience as a paralegal both in the US and UK. Prior to joining RWG, Keeran worked for one of the world’s top known global business immigration law firms, where he became familiar with high volume immigration for large multinational clients, handling all aspects of employment based green card work including labor certifications, I-140 petitions, adjustment of status applications, requests for evidence, and other auxiliary matters. Keeran also worked at a busy Bay Area family immigration non-profit where he received excellent training in Adjustment of Status applications, I-130 petitions and citizenship applications.
At RWG, Keeran helps start-ups, small companies, investors, researchers and creative talent secure temporary nonimmigrant and immigrant visas such as H-1Bs, L-1s, E-2s, I-140s and more. Using his savvy networking and business development skills he is also a valuable team player helping grow RWG.
Following his education as an attorney in the UK, Keeran co-founded and managed a business in Thailand during a period of extensive travels throughout Europe, Asia and North America. His international business and travel experience permits him to easily communicate with members of other cultures on a professional, yet personal level.
Education
- Wolverhampton Law School (U.K.), L.P.C, 2000
- Wolverhampton Law School (U.K.), L.L.B., 2000
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Manohardeep Singh Josan
Paralegal/IT Manager
O: (352) 458-4170
E: josanmd@ryvinlaw.com
Royal Palm Beach, FL
Mr. Josan is one of our paralegals and in-house IT manager. His work ethic, organizational skills and exceptional attitude mean that he is always taking on more than his share. He works fast and his analytical ability allows him to drive solutions which keep our office running smoothly with the latest technologies. His duties with our firm include:
- Evaluating and creating immigration forms for filing
- Working through client paperwork to extract data and information for case processing
- Preparing supporting and filing letters for H-1Bs, Adjustments of Status and Naturalizations
- Organizing information for filing with U.S. CIS
- Utilizing background in science to research relevant technical information for development of extraordinary ability cases, engineering-related cases as well as other science and IT cases
- Managing the firms networking, software and hardware solutions
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Mary Theresa Lamancuso
Paralegal
O: (716) 635-0501
E: 1maryt@verizon.net
Buffalo, New York
Experience
Mary has been a paralegal in the immigration law field since 1988, specializing in labor certification applications. She has successfully prepared hundreds of labor certification applications, while carefully tracking the evolution of the Department of Labor’s labor certification program over the course of more than 20 years. Mary works alongside our attorneys to manage the labor certification (PERM) process for our clients, lending her considerable experience and expertise in this complex and labor intensive area of US immigration law.
