dismissed H-1B Case: Legal Services

U.S. Department of Homeland Security 
20 Mass. Ave., N.W., Rm. A3042 
Washington, DC 20529 
mlsc COPY U. S. Citizenship and Immigration 
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FILE: EAC 03 201 50359 Office: VERMONT SERVICE CENTER Date: SEP 0 6 2005 
PETITION: Petition for a Nonimmigrant Worker Pursuant to Section 10 I (a)( 1 S)(H)(i)(b) of the 
Immigration and Nationality Act, 8 U.S.C. €j 1 10 I (a)(l5)(H)(i)(b) 
ON BEHALF OF PETITIONER: 
SELF-REPRESENTED 
INSTRUCTIONS: 
This is the decision of the Administrative Appeals Office in your case. All documents have been returned to 
the office that originally decided your case. Any further inquiry must be made to that office. 
Robert P. Wiemann, Director 
Administrative Appeals Ofice 
www. uscis.gov 
EAC 03 201 50359 
Page 2 
DISCUSSION: The service center director denied the nonimmigrant visa petition and the matter is now 
before the Administrative Appeals Office (AAO) on appeal. The appeal will be dismissed. The petition will 
be denied. 
The petitioner is a court documentation company that seeks to employ the beneficiary as a researcherllegal 
assistant. The petitioner endeavors to classify the t~eneficiary as a nonimmigrant worker in a specialty occupation 
pursuant to section lOl(a)(15)(H)(i)(b) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (the Act), 8 U.S.C. 
3 l lOl(a)(lS)(H)(iXb). 
The director denied the petition because the profl'ered position does not qualify as a specialty occupation, and 
because the beneficiary is not qualified to perform the duties of a specialty occupation. On appeal, the petitioner 
submits a brief and additional information stating 1 hat the offered position qualifies as a specialty occupation and 
that the beneficiary is qualified to perform the duties of a specialty occupation. 
The first issue to be discussed in this proceeding is whether the proffered position qualifies as a specialty 
occupation. 
Section 10 l(a)( 1 S)(H)(i)(b) of the Act, 8 U.S.C. 9 1 I0 l (a)(] S)(H)(i)(b), provides, in part, for the 
classification of qualified nonimmigrant aliens who are coming temporarily to the United States to perform 
services in a specialty occupation. 
Section 214(i)(l) of the Act, 8 U.S.C. 5 11 84(i)(l), defines the term "specialty occupation" as an occupation 
that requires: 
(A) theoretical and practical application of a body of highly specialized knowledge, and 
(B) attainment of a bachelor's or higher degree in the specific specialty (or its equivalent) as a 
minimum for entry into the occupation in the United States. 
The term "specialty occupation" is further defined at 8 C.F.R. $ 214.2(h)(4)(ii) as: 
[A]n occupation which requires theoretical and practical application of a body of highly 
specialized knowledge in fields of human endeavor including, but not limited to, architecture, 
engineering, mathematics, physical sciences, social sciences, medicine and health, education, 
business specialties, accounting, law, theology, and the arts, and which requires the attainment of 
a bachelor's degree or higher in a specific specialty, or its equivalent, as a minimum for entry 
into the occupation in the United States. 
Pursuant to 8 C.F.R. 4 2 14,2(h)(4)(iii)(A), to qualify as a specialty occupation, the position must meet one of 
the following criteria: 
(I) A baccalaureate or higher degree or its equivalent is normally the minimum requirement 
for entry into the particular position; 
EAC 03 20 1 50359 
Page 3 
(2) The degree requirement is common to the industry in parallel positions among similar 
organizations or, in the alternative, an employer may show that its particular position is 
so complex or unique that it can be performed only by an individual with a degree; 
(3) The employer normally requires a degree or its equivalent for the position; or 
(4) The nature of the specific duties are so specialized and compiex that knowledge required 
to perform the duties is usually as:sociated with the attainment of a baccalaureate or 
higher degree. 
Citizenship and Immigration Services (CIS) interprets the term "degree" in the criteria at 8 C.F.R. 
5 214.2(h)(4)(iii)(A) to mean not just any baccalaureate or higher degree, but one in a specific specialty that is 
directly related to the proffered position. 
The record of proceeding before the AAO contains: (1) the Form 1-129 and supporting documentation; (2) 
the director's request for additional evidence; (3) the petitioner's response to the director's request; (4) the 
director's denial letter; and (5) the Form I-290B with supporting documentation. The AAO reviewed the 
record in its entirety before issuing its decision. 
The petitioner is seeking the beneficiary's sr:rvices as a researcher/legal assistant. Evidence of the 
beneficiary's duties includes the Form 1-129 petition with attachment and the petitioner's response to the 
director's request for evidence. According to the evidence the beneficiary would: 
Perform legal research on specific issues pertaining to various lawsuits and claims using the Internet 
and other specific database programs for the clients of the company; 
Process, organize, prepare and present the results of the research to the company and/or its clients 
including attorneys; 
Travel to area courts, agencies, etc. to conduct legal research to locate specific information and 
documents; 
a Employ or direct third party vendors to conduct legal research projects at courts and/or agencies 
outside of the immediate area; 
Keep the company and/or clients informed of the status of research; 
Forge strong business relationships with clients; and 
Manage personal accounts and report spending monthly to management and accounting. 
The petitioner requires a minimum of a bachelor's degree in the Arts, including English, Political Science, 
Legal Studies or related subjects for entry into the offered position. 
EAC 03 201 50359 
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Upon review of the record, the petitioner has failed to establish that a baccalaureate or higher degree or its 
equivalent is normally the minimum requirement for entry into the offered position, or that a degree 
requirement is common to the industry in parallel positions among similar organizations, as asserted by the 
petitioner. Factors often considered by CIS when determining these criteria include: whether the Department 
of Labor's Occuputional Outlook Handbook (Handbook) reports that the industry requires a degree; whether 
an industry professional association has made a degree a minimum entry requirement; and whether letters or 
affidavits from firms or individuals in the indusiry attest that such firms "routinely employ and recruit only 
degreed individuals." See Shanti, Inc. v. Rmo, 36 F. Supp. 2d 1151, 1165 (D. Minn. 1999) (quoting 
Hird/Blaker Corp. v. Savu, 7 1 2 F. Supp. 1 095, 1 1 02 (S. D.N .Y. 1 989)). 
The AAO routinely consults the Department of' Labor's Occupu~ional Ohtlook Handbook (Handbook) for 
information about the duties and educational requirements of particular occupations. The duties of the 
proffered position are those noted for paralegals and are described in the Handbook as follows: 
While lawyers assume ultimate responsibility for legal work, they often delegate many of 
their tasks to paralegals. In fact, paralegals-also called legal assistants- continue to assume a 
growing range of tasks in the Nation's legal offices and perform many of the same tasks as 
lawyers. Nevertheless, they are still explicitly prohibited from carrying out duties which are 
considered to be the practice of law, such as setting legal fees, giving legal advice, and 
presenting cases in court. 
One of a paralegal's most important tasks is helping lawyers prepare for closings, 
hearings, trials, and corporate meetings. Paralegals investigate the facts of cases and ensure 
that all relevant information is considered. They also identify appropriate laws, judicial 
decisions, legal articles, and other matel-ials that are relevant to assigned cases. After they 
anaiyze and organize the information, paralegals may prepare written reports that attorneys 
use in determining how cases should be handled. Should attorneys decide to file lawsuits on 
behalf of clients, paralegals may help prepare the legal arguments, draft pleadings and 
motions to be filed with the court, obtain affidavits, and assist attorneys during trials. 
Paralegals also organize and track file!; of all important case documents and make them 
available and easily accessible to attorneys. 
In addition to this preparatory work, paralegals also perform a number of other vital 
functions. For example, they help draft contracts, mortgages, separation agreements, and 
trust instruments. They also may assist in preparing tax returns and planning estates. Some 
paralegals coordinate the activities of other law office employees and maintain financial 
office records. Various additional tasks may differ, depending on the employer. 
The Handbook notes that there are several ways to become a paralegal, and that employers usually require 
formal paralegal training through an associate/bachelor's degree, or certification programs. Increasingly, 
employers prefer graduates of four-year paralegal programs, or college graduates with paralegal certification. 
Other employers, however, prefer to train college graduates with no experience, or to promote experienced 
legal secretaries. It is, therefore, apparent that a baccalaureate or higher degree in a specific specialty, or its 
equivalent, is not normally the minimum requirement for entry into the proffered position. Indeed, the 2001 
EAC 03 20 1 50359 
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Parulegal Compensation and BeneJits Repor& published by the National Federation of Paralegal Associations, 
Inc., notes that in the petitioner's geographic reglon, only 50.7 percent of paralegals hold a bachelor's degree 
or higher. The petitioner has failed to satisfy the first criterion of 8 C.F.R. ij 214.2(h)(4)(iii)(A). 
The petitioner asserts that a degree is comnion to the industry in parallel positions among similar 
organizations. 8 C.F.R. !j 214,2(h)(4)(iii)(A)(2). In support of this assertion, the petitioner submitted 
numerous job advertisements for paralegal positions in the United States. The vast majority of advertisements 
indicated that bachelor's degrees were required for the positions, although some only preferred a degree or 
paralegal certification. The majority of advertisements requiring degrees, however, did not require a degree 
in any particular specialty. Degrees in any number of disciplines would suffice. The petitioner has not, 
therefore, established that a degree in a specific specialty is common to the industry in parallel positions 
among similar organizations. The petitioner has failed to establish the criterion at 8 C.F.R. 
2 14.2(hX4)(iii)(A)(2). 
The petitioner asserts that it normally requires a degree for the proffered position and has therefore 
established the criterion at 8 C.F.R. 5 2 14.2(h!(4)(iii)(A)(3). In support of this assertion the petitioner 
provided copies of diplomas for three employees and stated that those employees perform duties similar to 
those to be performed by the beneficiary. The petitioner did not, however, list the duties of those employees 
so that a comparison of their job responsibilities could be compared to those of the beneficiary. The three 
diplomas provided indicated that the employees held the following degrees: a Bachelor of Arts degree; a 
Bachelor of Fine Arts degree; and a Master of lndustrial Design degree. Although the petitioner states that it 
has 32 employees, it did not provide evidence of any other researcherllegal assistant positions held by degreed 
individuals. The degrees provided by the petitioner establish that the petitioner does not normally require a 
degree in a specific specialty for the proffered position. One employee held a Master's Degree in lndustrial 
Design, which is unrelated to the Bachelor of Arts and Fine Arts degrees held by the other two employees. 
The information submitted by the petitioner is corroborated by the Hundhook's discussion of the educational 
requirements for the position. The duties of the proffered position are routinely performed by individuals 
with educational backgrounds in a wide range of unrelated disciplines, and their performance does not require 
the theoretical and practical application of a bod:y of highly specialized knowledge. The petitioner has failed 
to establish the criterion at 8 C.F.R. 5 214.2(h)(4:i(iii)(A)(3). 
Further, Citizenship and Immigration Services (('IS) must examine the ultimate employment of the alien, and 
determine whether the position qualifies as a specialty occupation. CJ Defensor v. Meissner, 201 F. 3d 384 
(5th Cir. 2000). The critical element is not the title of the position or an emptoyer's self-imposed standards, but 
whether the position actually requires the theoretical and practical application of a body of highly specialized 
knowledge, and the attainment of a baccalaureate or higher degree in the specific specialty as the minimum 
for entry into the occupation as required by the ~ct.' To interpret the regulations any other way would lead to 
absurd results: if CIS were limited to reviewing: a petitioner's self-imposed employment requirements, then 
any alien with a bachelor's degree could be brought into the United States to perform a menial, 
I 
The court in Defensor v. Meissner observed that the four criteria at 8 C.F.R. 214,2(h)(4)(iii)(A) present 
certain ambiguities when compared to the statutory definition, and "might also be read as merely an additional 
requirement that a position must meet, in addition to the statutory and regulatory definition." See id. at 387. 
EAC 03 201 50359 
Page 6 
non-professional, or an otherwise non-specialt:~ occupation, so long as the employer required all such 
employees to have baccalaureate or higher degrees. See id at 388. 
The duties to be performed by the beneficiary are not so specialized or complex that knowledge required to 
perform them is usually associated with the attainment of a baccalaureate or higher degree in a specific 
specialty. Nor are the duties so complex or unique that they can be performed only by an individual with a 
degree in a specific specialty. The duties are routine for researchertlegal assistant/paralegal positions in the 
industry and routinely performed by individuals with less than a baccalaureate level education, and by 
individuals with degrees in a wide range of educational disciplines. The petitioner has failed to establish the 
referenced criteria at 8 C.F.R. $8 2 14,2(h)(4)(iii)(A)(2) or (4). 
As related in the discussion above, the petitioner has failed to establish that the proffered position is a 
specialty occupation. Accordingly, the AAO shall not disturb the director's denial of the petition. 
The burden of proof in these proceedings rests solcly with the petitioner. Section 291 of the Act, 8 U.S.C. FJ 136 1. 
The petitioner has failed to sustain that burden and the appeal shall accordingly be dismissed. 
ORDER: The appeal is dismissed. The petition is denied.