About Me

Ann R. Peters graduated from the University of Illinois, undergraduate, earning a Bachelors Degree in English from the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences.  Ms. Peters graduated from Northern Illinois University College of Law, studying International Human Rights Law abroad, and becoming a member of the New York State Bar and New York County Lawyers Association.  Ann worked in criminal law, personal injury law and immigration law before beginning private practice focused solely on U.S. Immigration Law in 2009.  Ms. Peters has successfully represented clients in removal defense and family based immigration, including cases of: Cancellation of Removal (grounds of inadmissibility and deportability, and appeals to the Board of Immigration Appeals for Lawful Permanent Residents and Non-Lawful Permanent Residents as well as to the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals); Asylum, Withholding of Removal and Protection Under the Convention Against Torture; U-Visas; Waivers of Unlawful Presence and other grounds of inadmissibility; Adjustment of Status, including parents, children and spouses of U.S. Citizens and Lawful Permanent Residents, including waivers for crimes and grounds of inadmissibility; Prosecutorial Discretion for children and adults; Consular Processing for spouses, parents, siblings and children, including waivers of unlawful presence and other grounds of inadmissibility. Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals has been a more recent policy Ms. Peters has worked with, helping many non-citizens get work authorization under the original DACA policy.

Now that President Obama has issued a new executive action, as of November 2014, several new programs aimed to help many parents of U.S. Citizens, and even more Deferred Action candidates due to a change in age limits for the policy, Ms. Peters will be working with clients to determine their eligibility; however the new DACA and DAPA programs have been put on hold as of February 2015, due to a District Court injunction which is now being challenged by the U.S. Department of Justice as of March 2015. And no forms will be issued or accepted by USCIS at this time, due to this injunction. However, under the new enforcement priorities announced by President Obama, which do remain in effect, Ms. Peters is continuing to counsel clients as to their position in relation to these priorities. And with respect to the new DACA and DAPA programs, determining eligibility can begin with criminal background checks and gathering documents to put a person in the best position possible, should these programs prevail in the appeals process.

Although a district court injunction has put the new DACA and DAPA programs announced in November 2014 on hold for now, as of March 12th, the Justice Department has filed an emergency motion for stay, which could allow the programs to go forward, at least in some states: on March 12^th, 2015, the U.S. Justice Department filed an emergency motion for stay pending appeal, in Texas v. United States, requesting that the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals stay the district court’s nationwide preliminary injunction in its entirety or, at minimum, for states other than Texas, or states that are not parties to the suit.