EB5 Investors Magazine Volume 4 Issue 1 | Page 47

TOP 25 Cletus Weber Peng & Weber PLLC Cletus M. Weber is one of America’s leading immigration attorneys in EB-5. He co-founded Peng & Weber, Attorneys at Law in Seattle in 1992, and over the past two decades has built Peng & Weber into an internationally recognized EB-5 team of eight lawyers providing comprehensive EB-5related immigration law guidance to Bernard Wolfsdorf Wolfsdorf Rosenthal LLP Bernard Wolfsdorf took on his first EB-5 case almost 25 years ago in 1993, saving jobs at a troubled business. Now with decades of EB-5 experience, the firm has assisted thousands of clients with all aspects of the investor visa program, from the filing of visa petitions, to assisting with setting-up Regional Centers, to handling complex motions to reopen, IMMIGR ATION AT TORNE YS regional centers and project developers throughout the United States, as well as assisting EB-5 investors from China and around the world with I-526 and I-829 petitions. In 2015, for example, Weber served as project immigration counsel for more than $2 billion in active job-creating projects seeking to raise more than $1.2 billion in EB-5 funding. A leader in the EB-5 field, Weber was elected to the Board of Directors of Invest in the USA (IIUSA), the national association of EB-5 regional centers, whose members raise the vast majority of all EB-5 capital flowing into the USA. A recognized legal scholar in EB-5, Weber serves on the national EB-5 Committee of the American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA) and has edited, reviewed, or written for many leading books on EB-5. Examples include: Editor-in-Chief of The EB-5 Handbook: A Guide for Investors and Developers; Senior Editor of Immigration Options for Investors & Entrepreneurs, 3d. Ed. (AILA 2014) (Associate Editor of the 2d. Ed. in 2010); and Invited Reviewer of the EB-5 section of Kurzban’s Immigration Law Sourcebook, 14th & 15th Eds. (AIC 2014, 2016), widely considered the “bible” of U.S. immigration law. He also frequently speaks at major EB-5 conferences in the United States, China, Vietnam, and other countries. Among other recognition, Weber is listed in the 2016 Who’s Who Legal: Corporate Immigration. He also received an AILA Presidential Commendation for excellence as Chair of AILA’s National Board of Publications in 2012. Over the past two decades, Weber has been cited frequently in major media on EB-5 and other immigration law. Through self-study and numerous business trips to China over the past 25 years, Weber speaks “traveler’s” Chinese. appeals and removal proceedings.  Wolfsdorf manages the 30-year-old Wolfsdorf Rosenthal LLP, with offices in Los Angeles and New York City. The firm files both individual I-526/I-829 petitions and applications as well as Regional Center applications, exemplars and amendments. The firm is often retained to assist with highly complex EB-5 cases, including matters such as Regional Center terminations. Wolfsdorf enjoys the challenges of assisting clients entering the EB-5 arena for the first time, while providing value-added services for many of the most established Regional Centers. Wolfsdorf brings much more to the table than just technical expertise. His firm’s extensive experience, together with his own immigrant experience, and that of his Chinese immigrant spouse, provides a unique ability to connect with clients. In addition to his work on individual cases, Wolfsdorf is known for his informative blogs, webinars and public speaking focused on understanding the Chinese waiting line. He is well-known for his expertise in strategizing to prevent investor’s children from aging out of green card eligibility. He sees the EB-5 program as an excellent avenue for successful people to immigrate to the U.S. and to provide a world-class education for their children. Among many accolades, Wolfsdorf has been named the “2016 Most Highly Regarded Corporate Immigration Lawyer” in North America by Who’s Who Legal that also selected him as “Corporate Immigration Lawyer of the Year” for six successive years from 2010-2015.Chambers and Partners rated the firm amongst the top 15 in North America. Wolfsdorf is also a past president of the 14,000-member American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA) where he received the “Service Excellence Award” for his volunteer activities. Continued to page 46 WWW.EB5INVESTORS.COM 45