Raymond G. Lahoud, Chair of the firm’s Immigration Law Practice Group, focuses exclusively on the area of immigration law and deportation defense for individuals, families, small to large domestic and multinational businesses and corporations, employers, international employees, investors, students, professors, researchers, skilled professionals, athletes, and entertainers, in every type of immigration or deportation defense matter-whether domestic or foreign. While Ray’s immigration practice is global in reach, with service to individuals and organizations across the United States and beyond, he is located primarily at the firm’s three globally-linked offices: New York, New York; Bridgewater, New Jersey; and Allentown, Pennsylvania.
Ray’s immigration practice is broad, ranging from areas of corporate and employment immigration and related compliance to immigration litigation before agencies and courts across the United States, for corporations and individuals alike. His experience includes immigrant and non-immigrant visas, visa overstays, immigrants who entered without inspection or authorization, EB-5 investor visas (serving investors, regional centers, and project developers), citizenship and naturalization claims, deportation and removal litigation at the immigration court and all appellate levels, E Visas, E-3 Visas, H-1B Visas, H-2B Visas, L Visas, O Visas, P Visas, Q Visas, R Visas, TN Visas, Exceptional Ability Immigrant Visas, Extraordinary Ability Immigrant Visas, Physician and Nursing Visas, K-1 Visas, K-3 Visas, Multinational Manager/Executive Immigrant Visas, Outstanding Professor/Researcher Immigrant Visas, PERM Labor Certification, Family Petitions, Adjustment of Status, Marriage Petitions, Asylum, VAWA applications, and Immigration Waivers, such as the Visa Waiver Program, National Interest Waivers, Hardship Waivers, and J Waivers.
Ray’s corporate immigration practice includes representing businesses of all sizes, in all corporate immigration and employer immigration compliance matters. He has served nearly every industry, including healthcare, education (community colleges, colleges, universities, students, professors, and researchers), manufacturing, global and domestic employment/talent recruitment, warehousing and distribution, pharmaceutical, economic development, local, county, and state government agencies, non-profit, religious, real estate development and EB-5 investor financing, information technology, marketing, entertainment, and sports. Ray’s corporate immigration and employer immigration compliance practice includes all non-immigrant and immigrant visas, recruitment of international talent and students, and consular processing, as well as Form I-9 and Department of Labor Wage & Hour Division compliance. Further, he has litigated corporate immigration matters before the Department of Labor’s Wage & Hour Division, the Department of Homeland Security’s investigative bodies and agencies, the State Department, the United States Court of Appeals for International Trade, the Customs & Border Protection review board, and federal appellate courts-seeking review of employer immigration compliance and other immigrant and non-immigrant visa issues.
Ray’s immigration litigation practice includes deportation defense of thousands of individuals, at the Immigration Court, the Board of Immigration Appeals, the Administrative Appeals Office, and federal district and circuit courts. In state and federal trial and appellate courts, he seeks post-conviction relief for the underlying crime that led to the removal proceedings, and serves as immigration counsel to non-citizens accused of removable crimes. Ray’s ability to understand each interaction of criminal law with immigration law has made him a leading expert on issues of “crimigration” before state and federal courts reviewing post-conviction relief claims.
As Chair of the Immigration Practice Group, Ray oversees a leading team of immigration attorneys, immigration review compliance experts, employer immigration auditors, and paralegals and legal assistants with extensive and continuing immigration law training and significant practice experience.
Ray has received numerous accolades. He has been awarded the Empire State Pro Bono Counsel Award each year since 2012, has been selected as Lead Counsel, received the Martindale-Hubbell Platinum Client Champion Award, and has been named a Super Lawyers Rising Star, ranked as a Top Rated Immigration Attorney in the New York Metro Area. EB5 Investors, the leading online portal, conference series, and magazine for investors, developers, and EB-5 professionals, has named Ray one of the “Top 5 Rising Stars” nationally. He was also named one of the 40 young professionals from the Greater Lehigh Valley as the Lehigh Valley Business 2017 Forty Under 40 for his commitment to business growth, professional excellence, and the community.
In law school, Ray earned Dean’s List, received CALI awards in many courses, and worked on the Georgetown Immigration Law Journal. He was actively involved in additional programs and other organizations including the Barristers’ Counsel, ABA Law Student Division, ACLU at GULC, Catholic Student Association, and the Innocence Project, and worked for the Honorable Joanne Seybert, Federal District Court Judge for the Eastern District of New York.
At Lehigh, Ray was Editor of The Lehigh Review, earned Dean’s List, was named a President’s Scholar, was inducted into Phi Beta Delta, and received, among other awards, the Williams Award, Treen Scholarship, and Littner Scholarship.
He served as a United States Congressional Page under then-Congressman Ray LaHood (R-IL), and was a legislative aide to State Senator Lisa Boscola (D-PA).
News
Ray Lahoud Named Co-Vice Chair of Pennsylvania Bar Association Immigration Law Committee
Ray Lahoud to Speak on “Crimmigration” for Annual Immigration Law Basics Program
Ray Lahoud to Speak at New York Asylum & Immigration Law Conference
Ray Lahoud and Rich Somach to Speak at Pennsylvania Bar Real Estate Institute
Norris McLaughlin Attorneys to Present at Somerset County CLE Marathon Day
Ray Lahoud to Speak at 2019 Lehigh Valley Business HR Symposium
Ray Lahoud to Speak at Lehigh Valley Schools
Norris McLaughlin Sponsors 42nd Lebanese Heritage Days Festival
Norris McLaughlin Sponsors Easton Hispanic Cultural Festival
Ray Lahoud Named to Iraqi Children Foundation Advisory Board
Norris McLaughlin Sponsors the 34th Annual Lebanese Festival
Ray Lahoud to Present Immigration Law Basics
Ray Lahoud to be Interviewed for Montclair State University’s Live Broadcast
Raymond Lahoud to Present I-9 Compliance Seminar for Employers
JD Supra recognizes Norris McLaughlin Attorneys in 2019 Readers’ Choice Awards
Raymond Lahoud to Present for Keller Williams Realty
Raymond Lahoud to Present on Immigration Law and the Real Estate Industry
Raymond Lahoud to Present at New York Immigration and Asylum Law Conference
Raymond Lahoud to Present Immigration Law for Lehigh County Paralegal Association
Ray Lahoud to Present on Family Immigration
Raymond Lahoud to Present “Immigration in the United States” at Penn State Lehigh Valley
Norris McLaughlin Attorneys to Speak at Triple Play REALTOR Convention & Trade Expo
Norris McLaughlin to Present EB-5 Financing Program for GLVR
Raymond Lahoud to Speak at East Stroudsburg University
Norris McLaughlin to Present I-9 Compliance Seminars for Employers
Norris McLaughlin Sponsors 2018 Cultural Festivals
Raymond Lahoud Named Chair of American Immigration Lawyers Association ICE Worksite Enforcement Committee
Raymond Lahoud to Be a Panelist for the 2018 EB-5 Convention Los Angeles
Raymond Lahoud a Panelist for HCCLV’s Immigration and Business Forum
Raymond Lahoud a Panelist at U.S. Immigration Law: Basics & Beyond
Raymond Lahoud Interviewed by New Jersey Business Magazine
Raymond Lahoud Accepted to NAFSA’s Trainer Corps
Raymond Lahoud Recognized as JD Supra Top Immigration Author
Raymond Lahoud Spoke to Greater Lehigh Valley REALTORS
JD Supra Recognizes Norris McLaughlin, P.A. in “2018 Readers’ Choice Awards”
Raymond Lahoud Presents on Form I-9 Requirements
Raymond Lahoud to Present Immigration Law and its Reach into Nearly Every Other Practice Area
Raymond Lahoud to Judge NYU 2018 National Immigration Law Competition
Chair of NMM Immigration Law Practice Raymond Lahoud Speaks on Asylum
Raymond Lahoud Named Top 5 Rising Stars Nationally by EB5 Investors
Ray Lahoud to Speak on Form I-9 for Somerset County Business Partnership
Ray Lahoud Receives Martindale-Hubbell Platinum Client Champion Award
Raymond Lahoud Honored as NYSBA Empire State Counsel
Raymond Lahoud Featured in Metropolitan Corporate Counsel
Norris McLaughlin, P.A. Welcomes New Immigration Attorneys
Articles
New Immigration Rule’s Approach to Public Aid Is Not New
CONVENIENCE STORES BEWARE: IMMIGRATION IS COMING. WHAT DO YOU DO?
HIGHER EDUCATION, INTERNATIONAL STUDENTS, TRUMP, AND TUITION
TRUMP TRAVEL BAN TAKES EFFECT AT 8:00 PM TODAY. CONFUSION EXPECTED.
Blog - International Business Law Blog
EB-5 Update: Congress Extends EB-5 Investor Visa, Again.
EB-5 Immigrant Investor Program Expires in 5-Days. Will EB-5 be Reauthorized?
EB-5 Regional Center Alert: USCIS Annual Certification Submission Deadline Quickly Approaching
Healthcare, Hospitals, and Immigration: The Need to Access the Global Medical Professional Workforce with Ease
Supreme Court: Trump Travel Ban Here to Stay-for Now
NAFTA Termination and its Immigration Impact
Pennsylvania Tree Removal Company Fined $95 Million for Hiring Undocumented Immigrants
Current DACA Holders: Renew Your DACA Status Now
Breaking: Attorney General Rescinds DACA - Hundreds of Thousands of Individuals, Schools, Colleges, and Employers Uncertain What Happens Next
State Department Suspends U.S. Non-Immigrant Visa Processing in Russia
TPS Holders: Time to Review Your Status and Future
Ninth Circuit: Employer’s Good Faith Reliance on HR Director is Not a Defense for Any I-9 Form Compliance Violations - Civil Penalty in the Hundreds of Thousands of Dollars
With New Academic Year Approaching, Universities and Colleges Must Prepare for Possible Immigration Issues for Foreign and Students Studying Abroad
USCIS: H-1B Premium Processing for Certain Research Organizations, Colleges, Universities, Hospitals, and Other Cap-Exempt Petitioners Resumes
Immigration Compliance Due Diligence is Essential to M&A Transactions
Travel Ban Update: State Department Expands Definition of “Close Family”
Blog - Employment Law Blog
Do the Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA) and Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act Apply to Immigrant Employees?
Employers: DHS Releases New
Presentations
•“Crimmigration,” 2020 U.S. Immigration Law: Basics & Beyond, New Jersey State Bar Association, Live Webcast, June 24, 2020
•“Immigration Law Update,” Pennsylvania Bar Association Immigration Law Committee, Webinar, June 23, 2020
•Business Law 340 Summer Term 1, Sacramento City College, Online, June 2020
•“The Impact of the COVID-19 Outbreak on H-1B, H-2A, H-2B, L Visa Employers and Workers, and America’s Global Workforce,” Norris McLaughlin, P.A., Webinar, May 19, 2020
•“Responding to Coronavirus Orders and Adapting My Business - Is This the NEW NORMAL?,” Virtual Town Hall, March 31, 2020
•“B-1 Intro to Asylum Law,” NYC Asylum Conference, New York, NY, February 28, 2020
•“What to Know About the EB-5 Real Estate Investor Visa Program,” Triple Play REALTOR Convention & Trade Expo, Atlantic City, NJ, December 11, 2019
•“The (Hidden) Lucrative Intersections of Immigration Law and the Real Estate Industry,” Pennsylvania Bar Institute’s Real Estate Institute, Philadelphia, PA, December 5, 2019
•“The Evolution of Immigration Law into Every Practice,” Somerset County Bar Association CLE Marathon Day, Raritan Valley Community College, Branchburg, NJ, October 14, 2019
•“Is Your Business Struggling with Immigration Compliance?” Lehigh Valley Business HR Symposium, ArtsQuest at SteelSacks, Bethlehem, PA, September 25, 2019
•“Borders, Nationalisms, Identities: The Ethics of Global Citizenship,” Muhlenberg College Center for Ethics, Allentown, PA, September 20, 2019
•“Latinos in the Lehigh Valley,” Moravian Academy, Bethlehem, PA September 20, 2019
•“EOIR (Removal and Deportation) and Immigration Courts,” NJICLE/NJSBA 2019 U.S. Immigration Law: Basics & Beyond, New Jersey Law Center, New Brunswick, NJ, June 27, 2019
•“Are You I-9 Compliant?” Norris McLaughlin, P.A., Allentown, PA, April 24, 2019
•“Focus: Immigration” Live Broadcast, Montclair State University, Montclair, NJ, April 10, 2019
•“The Intersection of Immigration and Real Estate,” Keller Williams Realty, Moorestown, NJ, March 20, 2019
•“Introduction to Asylum Law,” 2019 New York Asylum and Immigration Law Conference, New York Law School, New York, NY, March 8, 2019
•“The Intersection of Immigration and Real Estate,” Hudson Gateway Association of REALTORS, White Plains, NY, March 7, 2019
•“A Confusing Immigration System: Facts, Myths, & Effects on Your Practice, What You Need to Know,” Bar Association of Lehigh County, Allentown, PA, February 26, 2019
•“Seeking Family Immigration Benefits in Immigration Court,” NJICLE/NJSBA, New Jersey Law Center, New Brunswick, NJ, January 23, 2019
•“Immigration in the United States,” Penn State Lehigh Valley Campus, PA, December 7, 2018
•“The (Hidden) Lucrative Intersections of Immigration Law and the Real Estate Industry,” Triple Play REALTOR Convention & Trade Expo, Atlantic City, NJ, December 5, 2018
•“Best Practices for ICE Audits When It Comes to Form I-9,” Norris McLaughlin, Bridgewater, NJ, November 13, 2018
•“How to Handle Form I-9 When Hiring and After,” Norris McLaughlin, Bridgewater, NJ, October 19, 2018
•East Stroudsburg University’s 2018 Constitution Day, ESU Science and Technology Center, East Stroudsburg, PA, September 18, 2018
•“A Deep Dive Into ‘At Risk’: How does USCIS interpret ‘risk’ and how should it? What are the practical implications?,” EB-5 Investor Magazine Annual Convention, Los Angeles, CA, July 24, 2018
•“2018 U.S. Immigration Law: Basics & Beyond,” NJICLE/NJSBA, New Jersey Law Center, New Brunswick, NJ, June 27, 2018
•“U.S. Visa and Entry Process for Students and Scholars,” Pennsylvania Convention Center, PA, May 28, 2018
•“Form I-9, Employment Eligibility Verification Instructional Seminar,” Greater Lehigh Valley Chamber of Commerce, PA, April 13, 2018
•“The Future of Immigration Law - How it Will Affect the Real Estate Industry,” Greater Lehigh Valley REALTORS, PA, March 16, 2018
•2018 New York Asylum and Immigration Conference, New York Law School, NY, February 23, 2018
•“Immigration Law and its Reach into Nearly Every Other Practice Area: What You Need to Know,” Bar Association of Lehigh County, PA, February 9, 2018
•2018 National Immigration Law Competition (ILC), New York University School of Law Moot Court Board, NYU, February 2, 2018
•“Immigration Law and its Reach into Nearly Every Other Practice Area: What You Need to Know,” Lehigh County Paralegal Association, Bar Association of Lehigh County, Allentown, February 2, 2018
•“Understanding Asylum and Refugee Law,” New Jersey Institute for Continuing Legal Education in cooperation with the NJSBA Immigration Law Section, Best Western Robert Treat Hotel, Newark, NJ, January 30, 2018
•“Labor & Employment Year In Review,” Norris McLaughlin, P.A., Bridgewater, NJ, December 7, 2017
•“Form I-9: Completing, Common Mistakes, Employer Compliance, and Increasing Fines and Enforcement,” Somerset County Business Partnership Human Resources Roundtable Group, November 15, 2017
•“Employers Beware: ICE is Cracking Down on I-9 Compliance,” Norris McLaughlin, P.A., Bridgewater, NJ, October 20, 2017
•“Employers Beware: ICE is Cracking Down on I-9 Compliance,” Norris McLaughlin, P.A., Bridgewater, NJ, September 22, 2017
•“Immigration 101,” Norris McLaughlin, P.A., Allentown, PA, May 10, 2017
Awards
Raymond G. Lahoud was selected to the 2016 Rising Stars Super Lawyers list. The Super Lawyers List is issued by Thompson Reuters. No aspect of this advertisement has been approved by the Supreme Court of New Jersey.
Raymond G. Lahoud has earned the Martindale-Hubbell Platinum Client Champion award.
Raymond G. Lahoud was selected to the JD Supra 2018 Readers Choice Awards list. No aspect of this advertisement has been approved by the Supreme Court of New Jersey.
Raymond G. Lahoud was selected to the JD Supra 2019 Readers Choice Awards list. No aspect of this advertisement has been approved by the Supreme Court of New Jersey.
Raymond G. Lahoud has earned the Martindale-Hubbell Peer Reviewed status. No aspect of this advertisement has been approved by the Supreme Court of New Jersey.
