Faculty

Lauren Anselowitz is a partner at the firm. She was recently named Immigration Lawyer of the Year by Best Lawyers. Her notable achievements include securing multiple grants under the Convention Against Torture before the U.S. Immigration Court and presenting oral argument before the U.S. Third Circuit Court of Appeals, successfully vacating a deportation order for a client.

Ms. Anselowitz has successfully represented Harlan York & Associates clients in over fifteen states before the Immigration Court and USCIS, including numerous matters involving detained immigrants with criminal convictions.

She currently serves as Treasurer of the Federal Bar Association’s Immigration Law Section and is the Immediate Past Chair of the New Jersey State Bar Association’s Immigration Law Section.

Ms. Anselowitz is a graduate of North Carolina State University and Seton Hall Law School and earned a Master of Arts degree from the John C. Whitehead School of Diplomacy and International Relations. She also attended the American University in Cairo, Egypt, and worked in international criminal law at the Special Court for Sierra Leone.

Annelise is the founder and principal at Araujo & Fisher in Boston. Attorney Araujo has over 18 years of practice in immigration, including removal and family-based, employment-based and humanitarian applications. She currently serves as the Chair of the American Immigration Lawyer Association (AILA) National Removal Defense Section Steering Committee and as a liaison on the EOIR National committee. She is a past chair of the New England chapter of AILA. She represents clients before the First, Second, Fifth and Ninth Circuit Courts of Appeals, U.S. District Court for the Districts of Massachusetts, Vermont, and Nebraska, the Immigration Courts, the Board of Immigration Appeals and the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services.

She was named a Boston Magazine Top Lawyer for 2021-2024. She is a nationally recognized thought leader and is a frequent speaker on the latest developments in immigration law. She serves on the Boards of Massachusetts Continuing Legal Education (MCLE) and Pathways for Immigrant Workers. She is a graduate of University of Toledo College of Law.

After obtaining a business degree and tax law degree, David worked as a tax and estate planning attorney at a big firm where he was paid a bunch of money. Without intending to cause his parents the resulting heart palpitations, David then left to serve as a trial attorney with the Missouri Public Defender’s System in Jackson County, Missouri where he remained for over six years.

After representing thousands of clients in matters ranging from misdemeanor assault to first degree murder, David joined the Wyrsch Hobbs Mirakian P.C. in 2007 where he is now a shareholder representing persons in federal, state and local criminal matters. David loves learning from and helping immigration lawyers because it reminds him that he doesn’t have it so bad on the criminal law side of things after all. When not practicing law and spending time with his family, David is a host of Jaws of Justice (90.1 FM KKFI).

Nathan graduated in 2011 from the University of Kansas School of Law, at which he was awarded for outstanding achievements in both lawyering and moot court. After law school, he served as a two-year term clerk for the Kansas Court of Appeals, and then worked as an associate attorney at an insurance-defense firm before joining the Johnson County Public Defender’s Office in May of 2015. Since then, Nathan has become a well-respected trial lawyer: He has tried 15 felony cases to jury verdict, several of which resulted in acquittals. Nathan also is known as a skilled and creative motions writer, and is successful in sentencing mitigation. In his spare time, he is an avid traveler and concert-goer; a serviceable partner and father; and a non-ineffective basketball and tennis player.

Kelly earned her Juris Doctorate from Washburn University School of Law in 2005. After spending a year in private practice, she quickly discovered her passion for public service. In August 2006, Kelly began working at the Board of Indigent Defense Services in Hutchinson, where she dedicated 9 years representing hundreds of indigent clients. In July 2015, Kelly transferred to the Johnson County Public Defender’s Office, where she was promoted to Deputy in October of that same year. She handles a wide variety of felony criminal cases, with a primary focus on violent felony crimes.

Having tried over 50 jury trials, she is committed to helping other attorneys advance their trial skills. In addition to her role as a public defender, Kelly has taught over 10 years at Hutchinson Community College, guiding students pursuing their paralegal degree. In her free time, Kelly enjoys reading—setting a goal to read 100 books a year—along with a love for coffee, traveling, and spending time with her husband, son, several dogs, and one spirited cat.   

Karen Faith is an ethnographer, strategist, and storyteller whose work has guided teams and initiatives at Google, Amazon, Indeed, The NBA, The ACLU, Blue Cross Blue Shield, The Federal Reserve Bank, The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, and more. She has taught her approach at Penn State, the Juilliard School for the Arts, University of Missouri, University of Kansas, Chapman University, and the National University of Singapore School of Design. A frequent speaker on human connection and insight, she’s presented at Google, DesignUp, HOW Design Live, Kansas City Design Week, the 4As Stratfest and in 2022, gave a TEDx talk to an audience of 3000, which has now been viewed three million times, and was recently featured on MSNBC’s Morning Joe.

Angel is the Directing Attorney for the Las Vegas Office of the Immigration Center for Women and Children (ICWC). ICWC is a non-profit legal organization providing free and affordable immigration services to underrepresented immigrants in California and Nevada. ICWC strives to provide security and stability for children who are abused, abandoned, or neglected and for immigrants who are survivors of domestic violence, sexual assault, and other violent crimes.

Angel received her B.A. from Elmhurst College, her M.A. in Latin American Studies from Georgetown University, and her J.D. from DePaul University College of Law. In a previous life, Angel worked in International Development and Human Rights. In 2008 she decided to pursue Immigration Law and during her time in Law School volunteered, worked, and interned with several organizations including Life Span Center for Legal Services and Advocacy, World Relief Chicago, the DePaul Immigration Clinic, and ProBAR. In 2012 Angel joined the Kansas City Immigration Court as an Attorney Advisor through the Department of Justice Honors Program.

She left government service in 2014 to join ICWC in San Francisco, CA, where she worked until 2019, helping to develop their growing removal practice. In June of 2019 Angel opened the ICWC office in Las Vegas, Nevada where she oversees a diverse caseload of removal defense, humanitarian-based protection, and affirmative relief. Angel also manages ICWC Las Vegas’s Unaccompanied Children program and provides trainings on issues related to humanitarian relief and removal.

Anne J. Greer began her legal career as an attorney advisor and senior supervisory attorney at the Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA) in Falls Church, Virginia. She was appointed to the position of Assistant Chief Immigration Judge in 2003. In 2008, she returned to the BIA as a Board Member (Appellate Immigration Judge) where she served until 2025.

Judge Greer taught immigration law as an adjunct professor at George Mason University from 1996 to 2016. She earned a Bachelor of Arts from Allegheny College and a Juris Doctorate from George Mason University School of Law. Judge Greer is a member of the District of Columbia Bar and the Virginia State Bar.

Hon. Edward (“Ed”) F. Kelly teaches Refugee Law and Policy at Georgetown Law, and Immigration Law at George Mason University Scalia School of Law, both in the Washington, D.C. area.

Mr. Kelly previously served in several positions in the United States Department of Justice, Executive Office for Immigration Review (EOIR). These included positions as Appellate Immigration Judge at the Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA), and Deputy Chief Immigration Judge, Assistant Chief Immigration Judge, Senior Counsel and Chief of Staff, and Counsel for Operations in the Office of the Chief Immigration Judge (OCIJ). Mr. Kelly also served as Acting Assistant Director, Office of Administration (EOIR) and Senior Legal Advisor, Team Leader, and Attorney Advisor at the BIA.

During his tenure at OCIJ, Mr. Kelly also supervised the Immigration Judge Training program and the offices of Conduct and Professionalism and Vulnerable Populations. Mr. Kelly also served EOIR as liaison to the Congressional Appropriations staff in the House of Representatives, and the Department of Homeland Security.

Mr. Kelly’s experiences outside the Department of Justice include positions as an Assistant Counsel to the United States House of Representatives, Committee on the Judiciary, Subcommittee on Immigration, Refugees, and International Law; and as a high school teacher of humane letters. Mr. Kelly graduated from the University of Notre Dame, received his J.D. Degree from Notre Dame Law School, and is currently pursuing an M.A. in Classical Studies at Villanova University. Prior to his legal career, he served as a volunteer teacher with the United States Peace Corps in Gabon, Africa.

Sarah Owings is a partner at Owings MacNorlin, LLC, based in Atlanta, GA. She obtained her Juris Doctor degree from the Georgia State University’s College of Law in 2007 and she has practiced immigration law exclusively since that time. Sarah has experience in representing foreign nationals in a variety of immigration proceedings including removal defense, family-based petitions, humanitarian forms of relief, and asylum proceedings. Sarah served as an elected director on the Board of Governors of the American Immigration Lawyers Association from 2017-2023.

Sarah currently serves on AILA’s national ICE and CBP Liaison Committees as well as the Removal Defense Section Steering Committee. She has been involved in immigration advocacy and support efforts at the state and local level throughout her career and she is frequently asked to speak at continuing legal education programs and to provide commentary to the media on the rapidly changing immigration landscape. She lives in Atlanta and is a member in good standing of the Georgia Bar.

Kathleen Reilly is a co-founder of SAIL, the Strategic Academy for Immigration Law. SAIL was formed in mid-2025 with the goal of providing innovative training experiences to help practitioners gain the knowledge and skills needed to advocate for their clients and the rule of law before USCIS, EOIR, and the federal courts. Kathleen is also currently making editorial contributions to the forthcoming update to Immigration Law and Defense, to be published later this year by the National Immigration Project of the National Lawyers Guild. Prior to co-founding SAIL, Kathleen was, until March 2025, an Appellate Immigration Judge at the Board of Immigration Appeals in Falls Church, VA.  Before rejoining the BIA, Kathleen served as an Immigration Judge in Hyattsville, MD, from 2021-2024.  While in Hyattsville, Kathleen managed a large docket of cases and assisted in establishing and presiding over a specialized docket serving juveniles in proceedings in the Hyattsville jurisdiction.  Before joining the bench, Kathleen was an Attorney Advisor at the BIA for almost two decades, where she advised on appeals and provided training and mentoring to EOIR staff.  Kathleen took particular interest in training new attorneys hired between 2019-2021 on appellate analysis and legal writing.  Kathleen has also served as Of Counsel to an immigration firm, providing support and analysis in BIA Appeals and Petitions for Review to U.S. Circuit Courts of Appeals.  Kathleen has also worked as a legal writer and editor for West Group, a subsidiary of Thomson Reuters. Kathleen obtained her Bachelor of Science degree in Biology from Bucknell University and a Juris Doctor from the Catholic University of America, Columbus School of Law.  Kathleen is a member of the District of Columbia and Pennsylvania Bars and anticipates admission in 2026 to the Maryland Bar.

Hon. Lory Rosenberg is renowned for her distinguished work as a former appellate immigration judge (Board Member) on the Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA), and is a sought-after immigration lawyer, mentor and certified business and personal development coach. Ms. Rosenberg’s legal mission is to elevate the cause of fairness and justice, establish best practices in the immigration law community, and champion due process for immigrants and refugees. She currently works on immigration law issues and cases with select law practices and individual counsel, and is active in the Round Table of Former Immigration Judges.

Ms. Rosenberg provides cutting-edge legal strategies to resolve complex immigration issues. Her legal expertise spans removal defense, asylum protection, waivers, “crim-imm,” and immigration benefits. Her work covers administrative BIA appeals and motions, federal district court litigation and federal circuit court petitions for review in multiple circuits, as well as amicus curie representation. She mentors and coaches immigration attorneys, helping them acquire the techniques, confidence and expertise necessary to handle challenging issues and develop fulfilling immigration practices.

Ms. Rosenberg is the co-author of Immigration Law and Crimes, and a national and international speaker, trainer and writer. While serving on the Board of Immigration Appeals between 1995 and 2002, she reviewed over 20,000 appeals and personally wrote more separate opinions than written by former and current Board Members, combined.

Ms. Rosenberg taught multiple immigration and refugee law courses as an adjunct professor at AU Washington College of Law, and was a featured editor for Benders Immigration Bulletin. She served as the Director of Advocacy and Policy for Amnesty International, the Director of the NLADA Defending Immigrants Partnership, and the Director of the AIC Legal Action Center. She established the Centro Presente Central American refugee legal and pro bono programs, and was an active member of the International Association of Refugee Law Judges, the Federal Bar Association, and AILA, serving 3 terms on its Board of Directors.

Ms. Rosenberg is a recipient of AILA’s Arthur Helton Human Rights Award, and AILA’s Edith Lowenstein Award for Advancing the Practice of Immigration Law, as well as the recipient of numerous acknowledgments for her contributions to the field. She is a 1976 graduate of Northeastern School of Law and licensed in Massachusetts and the District of Columbia.

Susan G. Roy began her legal career with the U.S. Department of Justice Attorney General Honors Program, as an Attorney Advisor at the Board of Immigration Appeals. She became an Assistant Chief Counsel and National Security Attorney for the Department of Homeland Security, Immigration and Customs Enforcement, in Newark, New Jersey. From 2008-2010, she served as an Immigration Judge, also in Newark. Sue then entered private practice and was a solo practitioner specializing in complex criminal immigration cases and federal litigation. Sue joined the Detention and Deportation Defense Initiative (DDDI) in 2024 as a Senior Practitioner in Residence with the Immigrants’ Rights/International Human Rights Clinic at the Seton Hall Law School Center for Social Justice. She became the DDDI Managing Attorney at Seton Hall Law in the fall of 2024.

Sue is the former Chair of both the American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA) New Jersey Chapter and the New Jersey State Bar Association (NJSBA) Immigration Law Section. She is currently the Vice-Chair of the NJSBA Municipal Court Practice Section and has been a  member of the NJSBA Legislative Committee for several years. Sue received the NJSBA Distinguished Legislative Services Award in 2023 and the AILA Sam Williamson Mentor Award in 2024.

During her time in immigration practice, Sue has been a guest lecturer at several law schools, and has taught as an adjunct professor at Rutgers Law School, University of DC Law School, and Mercer County College. She serves on the faculty of the Immigration Trial Advocacy College and Vecina, two pro bono organizations that train litigation attorneys in trial advocacy skills. In addition, she has authored articles in the New Jersey Law Journal, the AILA Law Journal, and the University of Vermont Law Journal, among others.

Sue is a member of the Round Table of Former Immigration Judges, and, through the Round Table, has been involved in more than 70 amici briefs before the U.S. Supreme Court, the federal courts of appeal, the New Jersey Supreme Court, the Board of Immigration Appeals, and other courts. As a Round Table member, in 2019, she was awarded the AILA Advocacy Award of the Year.  She has been a speaker and/or moderator for many NJSBA  conferences, in the areas of immigration, municipal court practice, ethics, and LGBTQ+ rights. She has presented at numerous AILA national, regional, and local conferences, as well as the New York State Bar Association, the Federal Bar Association, the American Bar Association, the Mercer County Bar Association, and the Practicing Law Institute.

Michelle Saenz-Rodriguez is the co-founder of Saenz-Rodriguez & Associates in Dallas, Texas. Now in her 33rd year of practice, Michelle was a Judicial Law Clerk under the Attorney General’s Honor program for Executive Office for Immigration Review in Harlingen, Texas. Michelle is Board Certified in Immigration and Nationality Law by the State Bar of Texas. She practices immigration law with an emphasis on removal litigation. Michelle and her husband George established their own practice in 1995 and represent immigrants from all over the world. Michelle has been selected several times as a “Texas Super Lawyer” by Texas Monthly Magazine and has been named one the “Best Lawyers in America” in Immigration for over 20 years.

She is a member of the American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA), where she serves as a member of the Board of Governors. She is a member of IMMLAW which is a nationally recognized top tier group of immigration lawyers. Michelle is an Adjunct Professor at SMU Dedman School of Law and in 2020 she was the Recipient of the W. Page Keeton Award for Excellence in Continuing Legal Education by the University of Texas Law School. She volunteers much of her time to mentor young or newly admitted lawyers and is active in her community.

Elina Magaly Santana is a Shareholder and Co-founder of Santana Residency Law, P.A.  She is licensed in the state of Florida, the U.S. District Court Southern District of Florida, and the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit. Elina is the firm’s lead Immigration Law Practitioner.  She focuses her practice on representing foreign clients in affirmative petitions with U.S. Citizenship & Immigration Services (“USCIS”), as well as providing direct representation at interviews and in deportation proceedings before the U.S. Immigration Courts.  Elina handles Family-based and Marriage-based Residency, Naturalization, Acquired and Derivative Citizenship, Deportation Defense (including Asylum, Cancellation of Removal, and Waivers), and Appeals for previously denied cases. 

Elina has also represented many detained clients in bond proceedings and reasonable/credible fear interviews. Furthermore, Elina has successfully argued for Stays of Deportation for clients with humanitarian reasons why they cannot return to their countries. She is dedicated to representing the immigrant community nationwide and travels often for her clients’ cases.  She has represented clients in courts nationwide, including Miami, FL; Orlando, FL; Hartford, CT; New York, NY; Buffalo, NY; Charlotte, NC; San Antonio, TX; Harlingen, TX; Atlanta, GA; Cleveland, OH; San Francisco, CA; Newark, NJ; Philadelphia, PA; Tacoma, WA; and Kansas City, MO, among others.

Kelli J. Stump is an attorney with over 15 years of experience in a practice limited exclusively to immigration law. Kelli focuses her area of practice in the firm primarily on family-based immigration, complex deportation with emphasis on criminal immigration matters leading to deportation, and federal litigation in the immigration context. To date, she has argued before the Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals on four occasions.

Kelli is an active member in the American Immigration Lawyers Association where she is currently the First Vice President on the national Executive Committee. Kelli is also a member of the American Immigration Lawyers Association (“AILA”) where she is a Past Chair of the Texas/Oklahoma/New Mexico Chapter. Additionally, she has served as a member of many National AILA Liaison committees including several years on the Immigration Customs Enforcement Committee, Executive Office for Immigration Review Committee, and the Conference Planning Committee.

She has authored several articles on immigration law, and she has served as an editor for the AILA annual conference handbook and fundamentals book. Kelli has also been recognized as a “Rising Star” for Super Lawyers in Oklahoma, and she has been selected by her peers to be included in “Best Lawyers in America.”

Judge (Retired) Paul Wickham Schmidt was appointed as an Immigration Judge at the U.S. Immigration Court in Arlington, Virginia, in May 2003 and retired from the bench on June 30, 2016. Prior to his appointment as an Immigration Judge, he served as a Board Member for the Board of Immigration Appeals, Executive Office for Immigration Review, in Falls Church, VA, since February 12, 1995. Judge Schmidt served as Board Chairman from February 12, 1995, until April 9, 2001, when he chose to step down as Chairman to adjudicate cases full-time. He authored the landmark decision Matter of Kasinga, 21 I&N Dec. 357 (BIA 1996), extending asylum protection to victims of female genital mutilation. He received a Bachelor of Arts degree from Lawrence University in 1970 (cum laude), and a Juris Doctorate from the University of Wisconsin School of Law in 1973 (cum laude; Order of the Coif).

While at the University of Wisconsin, he served as an editor of the Wisconsin Law Review. Judge Schmidt served as acting General Counsel of the former Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS) (1986-1987; 1979-1981), where he was instrumental in developing the rules and procedures to implement the Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986. He also served as the Deputy General Counsel of INS for 10 years (1978-1987). He was the managing partner of the Washington, DC, office of Fragomen, Del Rey & Bernsen (1993-95), and also practiced business immigration law with the Washington, DC, office of Jones, Day, Reavis and Pogue from 1987-92 (partner, 1990-92). Judge Schmidt also served as an adjunct professor of law at George Mason University School of Law in 1989 and at Georgetown University Law Center (2012-14; 2017–).

He has authored numerous articles on immigration law, and has written extensively for the American Immigration Lawyers Association. Judge Schmidt is a member of the American Bar Association, the Federal Bar Association, and the Wisconsin and District of Columbia Bars. Judge Schmidt was one of the founding members of the International Association of Refugee Law Judges (“IARLJ”). In June 2010, Judge Schmidt received the Lucia R. Briggs Distinguished Achievement Award from the Lawrence University Alumni Association in recognition of his notable career achievements in the field of immigration law.

Since retiring, in addition to resuming his Adjunct Professor position at Georgetown Law, Judge Schmidt has established the blog immigrationcourtside.com, is an Americas Vice President of the IARLJ, serves on the Advisory Board of AYUDA, and assists the National Immigrant Justice Center/Heartland Alliance on various projects, as well as speaking, lecturing, and writing in forums throughout the country on contemporary immigration issues, due process, and U.S. Immigration Court reform.

Michael Sharma-Crawford is a partner at Sharma-Crawford Attorneys at Law. He has been defending non-citizens in removal proceedings for more than 20 years. An accomplished and well recognized litigator and compassionate advocate of fairness in immigration law. As a former law enforcement officer, Michael has a deeper understanding of the challenges of immigration law enforcement, detainment issues and litigation. Michael frequently handles complex immigration proceedings where current statutes require greater experience and understanding.

Michael frequently lectures at the AILA national and mid-year conferences. He has also lectured about immigration law to the Kansas and Missouri Bar Associations, and Kansas and Missouri Public Defenders. Michael was one of the attorneys who was counsel on the successful Supreme Court Appeal, Mellouli v. Lynch, 135 S. Ct. 1980 (2015). He has successfully argued other cases before the Circuit Courts of Appeal and has handled many successful matters before the Board of Immigration Appeals.

He is admitted to the District Courts of Kansas and Missouri and the Federal Appeals Court for the Second, Seventh, Eighth and Tenth Circuits. He is also a member of the American Immigration Lawyer’s Association, Kansas Bar Association, Missouri Bar Association, Kansas City Metropolitan Bar Association. Michael serves as ICE Liaison for the local AILA Chapter. His former service includes the Board of Directors for Kansas Legal Services, the Kansas City Metropolitan Bar Foundation, the Advisory Committee for the ABA Commission on Immigration and as a member of the USCIS Field Operations Liaison Committee for AILA.

Rekha Sharma-Crawford is an expert in the field of immigration law. She has taken on many complex, high-profile cases and focuses on removal defense issues, trial advocacy, and federal litigation. In 2023, Rekha was elected the first South Asian American Secretary for the American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA); she currently serves as Second Vice President for the 2025–2026 term. In 2023, Rekha was a member of the AILA Amicus Committee when the committee was awarded AILA’s Jack Wasserman Memorial Award. In 2021, Rekha had previously been nationally recognized by AILA by being awarded the Edith Lowenstein Memorial Award for excellence in advancing the practice of immigration law. In 2018, the Kansas Bar Association honored her with the Courageous Attorney Award for having displayed exceptional courage in the face of adversity.

She is also the author of three children’s books: Aaliyah the Brave: Empowering Children Coping with Immigration Enforcement (2022), Finding Freedom: Empowering Young Survivors of Human Trafficking (2023), and Reat (2024), a story inspired by the legacy of Reat Underwood and the mission of SevenDays® to overcome hate through kindness and understanding. The net profits from Aaliyah the Brave and Finding Freedom are shared with the National Immigration Litigation Alliance.

Jacqueline, a proud El Paso native, earned her J.D. at the University of Texas School of Law and has been practicing immigration law in Austin since 1999. She is Board Certified in Immigration and Nationality Law by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization and has over 24 years of experience representing clients in family-based immigration, asylum, naturalization, and removal defense.

Jacqueline began her legal career with American Gateways and continues to serve her community through public service and education. She co-chairs the University of Texas CLE Immigration Law Conference and actively contributes to the American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA), where she has held leadership positions.

Her legal expertise has been recognized by Texas Super Lawyers and featured in media outlets like The New York Times and This American Life. Clients trust Jacqueline’s professionalism, depth of experience, and dedication to achieving the best outcomes in their immigration cases.