U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS)/CIS Ombudsman Open Forum

Bennett Savitz has practiced exclusively in the area of immigration law since 1994. Since 2008, Bennett Savitz has been selected as one of Boston’s Best Lawyers in Immigration Law by Best Lawyers of America. In 2014, he was selected to be added to The International Who’s Who of Corporate Immigration Lawyers. Since 1994, Mr. Savitz has been an active member of AILA, serving on several local and national committees, helping shape policies and procedures for the entire Immigration Bar. He has also served as the chair of the AILA New England Chapter, and speaks frequently and writes numerous articles on various aspects of immigration law. Mr. Savitz was also the chairman for a series of immigration law seminars conducted by Massachusetts Continuing Legal Education and was the editor of their two-volume Immigration Law Primer. He currently teaches Business Immigration Law at New England Law School, and a graduate school course on Immigration Law and Policy at Lesley University.

Suzanne B. Seltzer is the principal of The Seltzer Firm, PLLC. Ms. Seltzer is vice chair of the AILA USCIS Benefits and Policy Committee. She was previously chair of AILA’s Service Center Operations (SCOPS) Liaison Committee and served for many years on AILA’s Annual Conference Committee. Ms. Seltzer also co-founded the New York Anti-Trafficking Network (NYATN) in 2002, and sat on its Steering Committee from 2002-17. She regularly speaks and publishes on matters relating to immigration law. Ms. Seltzer is ranked among the nation’s top 20 practitioners in the area of immigration law by LawDragon, and is also included in Chambers Global, Chambers USA, Best Lawyers in America, New York Super Lawyers, and New York Magazine’s Best Lawyer’s in New York. She obtained her J.D. from Georgetown University Law Center, and her B.A. from the University of Pennsylvania.

Susan Im is founder of ImLaw, PC and has practiced exclusively immigration law for more than 20 years, with a focus on employment-based immigration. Ms. Im has served as chair of the AILA Service Center Operations (SCOPS) liaison committee from June 2019 through the present. She previously served as vice chair of the SCOPS liaison committee from 2017-19. She served on AILA’s Nebraska Service Center (NSC) liaison committee from 2013-17, AILA’s USCIS Ombudsman liaison committee from 2015-17, and as AILA Michigan’s Chapter Chair from 2011-13. In 2019, Ms. Im received the “Best Lawyers” designation by U.S. News & World Report and the “Leading Lawyers” distinction in 2019, 2018, and 2014. She has also served as a faculty member of the Institute of Continuing Legal Education (ICLE), where she has regularly presented on business immigration topics.

Kari Ann Fonte graduated from Florida State University College of Law, cum laude, after receiving her bachelor’s degree in Spanish/Latin American & Caribbean Studies. Ms. Fonte has practiced exclusively immigration law since 1995. She became partner in the firm Montiel Davis & Fonte in Miami, FL, which is now Fonte Immigration Firm. She is board certified by the Florida Bar as a specialist in Immigration and Nationality Law and served many years on the Board Certification Committee. She has been a member of AILA since she was a law student and served as president of the South Florida Chapter. She serves as chair of AILA National’s USCIS Field Operations Liaison Committee, and serves on the South Florida AILA/USCIS Liaison Committee. Ms. Fonte is an adjunct professor of immigration law at St. Thomas University School of Law. She is admitted to practice by the Florida Bar, the U.S. District Court Southern District of FL and the Eleventh Circuit. She is AV rated and fluent in Spanish.

Stacy Shore Ms. Shore has served as the Deputy Ombudsman (Acting) in the Office of the Citizenship and Immigration Services Ombudsman since August 2015. She joined the Ombudsman’s Office in April 2011, and has held various leadership roles during her tenure. From 2009 to 2011, Ms. Shore served as the National Program Manager for the Permanent Labor Certification Program (PERM) at the U.S. Department of Labor’s (Employment and Training Administration) Office of Foreign Labor Certification. Before joining the federal government, Ms. Shore practiced immigration law for approximately 10 years.