Chris Gafner’s Attorney Profile

Chris Gafner resolves immigration concerns for individuals and businesses.  He represents clients in all areas of immigration law, including family-based immigration, employment-based immigration, and investor immigration matters.

Chris Gafner provides each client with the utmost professional service in an area of law that is complex, expansive, and evolving.  The immigration process is filled with pitfalls and hurdles that can cause drastic delays and devastating denials if handled incorrectly.  Therefore, Chris has developed a welcoming client style that ensures he personally knows the intricacies of each client’s immigration concerns.  Additionally, he diligently follows immigration law developments to ensure his clients have the highest possibility of success.

Chris Gafner has authored numerous immigration articles and has been published in professional publications, including Bender’s Immigration Bulletin and the Fordham Urban Journal.  Many of his articles have focused on improving America’s ability to attract the best and brightest immigrants to the United States.  He often examines how to improve the EB 1-1 “Extraordinary Abilities” Visa, the EB 1-2 “Outstanding Professor and Researcher” Visa, and the National Interest Waiver.  He has also authored an article examining the fiancée visa (K-1 visa).

In addition to his articles, he has been a contributor to Immigration Law and Procedure – a leading treatise in immigration law.

Chris Gafner is a graduate of Cornell University and received his law degree from Notre Dame Law School.  While at Notre Dame Law School he studied in London, England through the Concannon Program of International Law and was a recipient of the Cliff Schmitthoff Memorial Scholarship.  Following graduation he served as a judicial clerk in the Northern District of New York.  As a judicial clerk, he assisted federal judges by researching federal caselaw.  Upon completing his clerkship, Chris Gafner began working in New York City and quickly determined he would have a more meaningful and fulfilling career helping immigrants contribute to America’s economic and cultural growth.  To that end, he founded Gafner Law Firm, P.C.

Chris Gafner is a member of the American Immigration Lawyers Association (“AILA”), the Immigration Committee of the New York County Lawyers’ Association (“NYCLA”) and the American Bar Association.

Select Publications:

• How USCIS Can Help the United States Win the Global Competition for the Best and Brightest,National Foundation For American Policy, Reforming America’s Regulations and Policies on Employment-based Immigration, 19, Aug. 2011 (co-author).
• Attracting the Best and Brightest: A Critique of Current U.S. Immigration System, 38 Fordham Urban Law Journal 183 (2010), reprinted in 16 Bender’s Immigr. Bull. 915 (June 1, 2011) (co-author).
• Winning the International Competition For Talent: Improving America’s Ability to Attract the Best and the Brightest, Legal Briefs on Immigration Reform from 25 of the Top Legal Minds in the Country, 204 (2011)(co-author).
• Immigration Parole: Recent Developments, 15 Bender’s Immigr. Bull. 191 (Feb.1, 2010)(co-author).
• The K-1 Visa: Recent AAO Decisions Concerning Waivers of the Meeting Requirement, 14 Bender’s Immigr. Bull. 1416 (Nov. 15, 2009).
• Unlawful Presence: An Update, 14 Bender’s Immigr. Bull. 1280 (Oct. 15, 2009) (co-author).
• AAO Makes Proving Extraordinary Ability Extraordinarily Hard to Prove, 7 Bender’s Immigr. Bull. 1218 (Oct. 15, 2002) (co-author).

Education:

Bachelor of Arts

Cornell University

Ithaca, New York

Juris Doctor

Notre Dame Law School

South Bend, Indiana