Congratulations to Amy Jill Novak, Mountain West Practice Director at Green and Spiegel U.S., who was just named Vice Chair of the American Immigration Lawyers Association Department of Labor Liaison Committee’s H-2 Section! Ashley Foret-Dees held the position before her. Amy has been a member of AILA’s Department of Labor Liaison Committee H-2B Visa Committee since 2019. This is her third year on the Department of Labor Committee. She has previously chaired the Colorado AILA’s Department of Motor Vehicles/Social Security Administration Committee, and served as a member of the Colorado AILA’s Access to Services Committee.
Initially, Amy wanted to be on the Department of Labor Liaison Committee due to her extensive H-2B work. Amy began practicing immigration law during 2005, in Vail, Colorado. Since most of the area’s revenue is based on tourism, which is seasonal in the Rocky Mountains, she began and continues her career with the H-2B visa. Her clients depend on their temporary seasonal workforce, without which their businesses suffer greatly. She has had approximately 40 H-2B clients this year alone.
Early on in her immigration career, Amy had the good fortune of meeting Leslie Holman, who connected her with AILA National on H-2B issues. Since then, Amy has assisted AILA National in writing comments to proposed rule making by the Department Of Labor, written a blog on H-2B related issues at Betsy Lawrence’s invitation, and participating in an H-2B webinar. Amy has also been a speaker at AILA’s National Conference on the topic of H-2B visas, and she attends AILA’s National Day of Action each year where she tries to lobby for cap reform on top of AILA’s other immigration priorities.
Amy’s interest in becoming Vice Chair of AILA’s Department of Labor H-2 Visa Committee stems from her desire to be part of and work with a great team and as a service to other AILA attorneys who practice in the H-2 area. Amy has said that the former chair, Sarah Peterson, this year’s chair, Vince Lau, and her other co-chair, Bob White, are some of “the most thoughtful and professional attorneys I have encountered”. In her new role, Amy looks forward to solving problems on behalf of AILA member attorneys and communicating these solutions to the organization.
Stanley Walker, a past Chapter Chair for AILA’s Mid-South Florida region, wrote this note to AILA’s then incoming President, Markta Lindt, on Amy’s behalf: “Marketa, I know nothing about business immigration – I’m actually scared of it. In Vegas of 2016 (I think that was the year), I went to Amy’s panel on H2Bs as a show of support. It was so informative and so phenomenal; today I have based so of my presentations on that format since then.”
Jonathan Grode, Green and Spiegel’s U.S. Practice Director, said, “We are very proud of Amy and her role as a thought leader in the H-2 practice area. Green and Spiegel prides itself on being at the cutting edge of immigration law, and Amy’s appointment is a shining example of this commitment and particularly her acumen in this very nuanced and ever changing area of immigration law.” Green and Spiegel congratulates Amy Jill Novak on her new role and knows she will be an asset to this committee!
