Herbert A. Weiss Immigration Law Blog on Lawyers.com

The I-140 Book

Wednesday, August 11, 2010 by Herbert A. Weiss

Recently I wrote a book about the employment-based immigration process. It's called The I-140 Book. It is a consolidation of the outlook and opinions I have formed over the years and, hopefully, reflects my expertise in this complex area of immigration law. My views about employment-based immigration have been shaped largely by my professional experience and by the critical thinking I was forced to engage in while practicing immigration law and writing articles about the process that appeared in various professional journals.

Some might consider this subject dry and tedious. It captured my fancy because it plays such a key role in how our immigration system works. Who we encourage to immigrate to the U.S., and the effect that such immigrants will have on our economy and political and social system, are questions of great urgency to this country. Nations like human beings live in a highly competitive world. Many advanced countries have shed xenophobic, particularistic impulses and now compete vigorously for skilled and educated foreign workers. We want to encourage productive people to come to the U.S., but what effect does such a policy have on our economy and on our key institutions, services and programs that we take for granted. For instance, by giving priority immigration treatment to foreign workers engaged in exceptional research, do we reduce the incentive of our education system to produce first-rate scholars who are research-minded? If we make our borders too tight, are we not curtailing the ability of people world-wide to participate and become part of the "exceptional" experiment in governance and freedom for which America has always stood? These are profound questions with a significant impact on the kind of country the U.S. is and will be in the future.

When I wrote the book I felt that I had something worthwhile to say and to share. Writing was an enjoyable process as well. It is pleasurable to find the right word to complete a thought, and to craft an elegant sentence or a well-reasoned statement. And, of course, it is nice to see one's name in print. I can only hope that the public's reaction to the book is positive.

Posted at 09:32 AM

Topic: Immigration