Lisa Spiegel

Partner

  • Lisa Spiegel
  • Phone: +1 415 957 3069

    Lisa Spiegel - LinkedIn Import to Address Book

  • Duane Morris LLP
    Spear Tower
    One Market Plaza, Suite 2200
    San Francisco, CA 94105-1127
    USA
  • Duane Morris LLP
    750 B Street, Suite 2900
    San Diego, CA 92101-4681
    USA
  • Duane Morris LLP
    260 Homer Avenue, Suite 202
    Palo Alto, CA 94301-2777
    USA

Lisa Spiegel is the head of the firm's Immigration Practice Group. Ms. Spiegel practices in the areas of immigration and nationality law, concentrating on issues related to the employment of foreign nationals. She has been designated as a certified specialist in immigration and nationality law by the State Bar of California and is a past chair of the Northern California Chapter of the American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA). Ms. Spiegel has served on numerous committees for AILA, including the Association's National Committee on Business and the AILA-USCIS Administrative Appeals Office Liaison Committee, as liaison to the New York and San Francisco District Offices of the Immigration & Naturalization Service and as national liaison with the California Service Center for many years. In addition, Ms. Spiegel is president of the Board of the Immigrant Legal Resource Center. She is admitted to practice in New York and California.

Ms. Spiegel served as editor of a chapter of The Immigration and Nationality Law Treatise, published by Matthew Bender, and authored a chapter of Advising California Employers, a CEB publication. She has published articles on immigration law issues and lectures frequently for various bar associations and conferences.

Ms. Spiegel is a 1985 graduate of the Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law of Yeshiva University and a graduate of the State University of New York at Albany.

Representative Matters

  • Prepares and files hundreds of PERM applications for a consulting-based company whose staff may be assigned to various working sites throughout the U.S.

  • Obtained lawful permanent residency status for two young immigrants, overcoming prior removal orders and establishing they were eligible for relief under the Nicaraguan Adjustment and Central American Relief Act (NACARA).

  • Obtained the approval of an O-1 visa, reserved for individuals with extraordinary ability, for a Canadian citizen to accept a high level executive position with Aramark.

  • Won appeal using novel argument for multinational manager/executive immigrant visa petition. Demonstrating the actual "life" of a Company involved in the early stages of a pharmaceutical/drug product line, notably how the company must be operational for at least one or more years prior to production and the signing of any contract for the new product. U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services originally denied the petition because they presumed the company had not been doing business for the one year required for an immigrant visa based solely on the date a $12 million contract with the U.S. government had been signed to assist in the fight against chemical warfare and not the date on which the company had begun its operations.

Areas of Practice

  • Immigration and Nationality Law
  • Visas

Admissions

  • California
  • U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California
  • U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit

Education

  • Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law, J.D., 1985
  • State University of New York at Albany, B.A., with honors, 1980

Experience

  • Duane Morris LLP
    - Partner, 2004-present

Professional Activities

  • Certified Specialist in Immigration and Nationality Law, State Bar of California
  • American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA)
    - Co-chair of the Program Committee for the 17th Annual California Chapter Conference
    - Administrative Appeals Office (AAO) Liaison Committee, 2003 - 2004
    - Past Chair, AILA for Northern California
    - Past Chair, National Committee on Business
  • Immigration & Naturalization Service
    - Past National Liaison, California Service Center
    - Past Liaison, San Francisco District Office
  • State Bar of California
  • New York State Bar Association

Honors and Awards

  • Who’s Who Legal: Thought Leaders for Corporate Immigration, 2023 and 2024
  • Lawdragon 100 Leading Immigration Lawyer, 2023
  • Selected as a 2023 Woman Leader in the Law, The American Lawyer 
  • Listed in The Best Lawyers in America, 2020-2024

  • Listed in San Diego Magazine Top Lawyers, 2021
  • Listed in Chambers USA: America's Leading Lawyers for Business, 2012-2023

  • Listed in Northern California Super Lawyers

  • Selected for 2020 International Advisory Experts Award in Immigration Law
  • Selected as a Thought Leader for Who's Who Legal: Thought Leaders – Corporate Immigration, 2020

  • Selected as a Top Rated Lawyer by The National Law Journal, 2019

  • Selected as a 2018 Woman Leader in the Law, The American Lawyer & Corporate Counsel

  • Selected for a Lawyer Monthly Magazine - Women In Law 2017 Award
  • Referenced in Legal 500 U.S.- Leading Lawyers for Immigration 2015
  • Listed in Who's Who Legal: Corporate Immigration, 2015
  • Named a San Diego County Top Attorney by San Diego Daily Transcript, 2014
  • Noted as one of Los Angeles' "Women Leaders in the Law" by American Lawyer Media and Martindale-Hubbell™, 2013
  • Listed in The Top Women Attorneys in Northern California, 2012
  • Listed in the Martindale-Hubbell® Bar Register of Preeminent Women Lawyers™
  • Achieved 15 Years of Continuous AV Preeminent® Peer Review Rated by Martindale-Hubbell®, 2010

    - West Coast's Top Rated Lawyers, 2018

Board Memberships

  • President, Board of Directors, Immigrant Legal Resource Center

Civic and Charitable Activities

  • Executive Committee, Community Free Loan Organization
  • Volunteer, San Francisco Unified School District

Selected Publications

Selected Speaking Engagements

  • Speaker, "Developments in Immigration Law and Best Practices," Duane Morris LLP, September 27, 2023
  • Presenter, "The California Year-End Employment and Immigration Law Roundup," Duane Morris LLP Webinar, December 1, 2021
  • Introductory Remarks, 9th Annual Citywide Diversity and Inclusion Networking Event and Panel Discussion, Webinar, California, October 14, 2021
  • Speaker, "State of the Workplace in 2021: Reopening in a Partially Vaccinated Environment and the New Administration," Duane Morris LLP, Webinar, May 19, 2021
  • Presenter, "Reopening in California and the Post-Pandemic Workplace: Recent Developments and Emerging Challenges in Employment and Immigration," Duane Morris LLP, Webinar, April 29, 2021
  • Speaker, "H-1B and Nonimmigration Visas: Lay-offs, Grace Periods and Changes in Employment Due to COVID-19," Duane Morris Institute (DMi), Webinar, April 14, 2020
  • Speaker, “2020 Vision: Legal Issues to Watch for in the Workplace,” Duane Morris Breakfast Briefing, San Francisco, November 8, 2019

  • Speaker, "Forward Thinking: The Latest Developments in Employment and Immigration Law and Preparing Your Workplace for the Future," Duane Morris Breakfast Briefing, November 13, 2018

  • Presenter, "New Employment and Immigration Laws and Developments," Duane Morris Breakfast Briefing, San Francisco, February 15, 2018

  • Speaker, "Surviving the Holiday Season: Workplace Holiday Parties and Planning for the New Year," Duane Morris Breakfast Briefing, San Francisco, November 9, 2017
  • Moderator, "Diversity and Inclusion v. Intolerance and Hatred: Where Do We Go From Here?" Bar Association of San Francisco 5th Annual Citywide Diversity and Inclusion Networking Event and Panel Discussion, San Francisco, October 19, 2017
  • Speaker, Duane Morris' Developments in Workplace Law and Practice, Chicago, San Diego and San Francisco, May 2017
  • Speaker, "What to Expect in 2017 Under President Trump: Employment and Immigration Practice," San Francisco, January 26, 2017
  • Speaker, "Living with the New L-1B Guidance Memo (Advanced Business Track)," AILA Annual Conference, Las Vegas, NV, June 24, 2016
  • Speaker, "PERM: What's Hot and What's Not," AILA Conference, San Francisco, CA, November 11, 2016
  • Speaker, Duane Morris' Developments in Workplace Law and Practice 2016, Chicago, Sand Diego and San Francisco, May 2016
  • Speaker, "New Employment and Immigration Laws For 2016 and Cases To Watch This Year," San Francisco, February 11, 2016
  • Speaker, Duane Morris' Developments in Workplace Law and Practice, San Diego, California,San Francisco, California, May 2015
  • Speaker, "Horrible Headlines: Lessons from Employment and Immigration Law Controversies in the News This Year," Duane Morris Employment, Benefits and Immigration Practice Group, San Francisco, October 15, 2014
  • Speaker, "2014 Developments in Workplace Law and Practice," Duane Morris Employment, Benefits and Immigration Practice Group, San Francisco, May 22, 2014
  • Speaker, "2014 Developments in Workplace Law and Practice," Duane Morris Employment, Benefits and Immigration Practice Group, Silicon Valley, May 21, 2014
  • Speaker, "New 2014 Employment and Immigration Laws and the Most Talked About Litigation Trends," Duane Morris' Employment, Labor, Benefits and Immigration Practice Group Breakfast Briefing, January 15, 2013
  • Speaker, "23rd Phillip Burton Immigration & Civil Rights Awards," Immigration Legal Resource Center, San Francisco, May 31, 2013
  • Speaker, "Navigating Employee Leaves of Absence," Duane Morris Employment, Benefits and Immigration Practice Group, San Francisco, October 17, 2012
  • Speaker, "Internal Investigations: A Step-by-Step Approach," Duane Morris Employment, Benefits and Immigration Practice Group, San Francisco, July 18, 2012
  • Discussion Leader, "I-9 Audits in the Dragnet: Will Other Agencies Take Notice?" American Immigration Lawyers Association annual conference, National Harbor, Maryland, June 30-July 3, 2010
  • Speaker, "Putting Up the Infrastructure: Immigration Requirements and Developments," Duane Morris' Developments in Workplace Law & Practice, San Diego, May 20, 2010
  • Speaker, "Planning for the Future: Protecting Your Current Business," Duane Morris' Developments in Workplace Law & Practice 2010, San Francisco, May 18, 2010
  • Co-presenter, "Ethics and Immigration Laws," AILA California Chapters Conference, Marina del Rey, California, November 14, 2009
  • Keynote Speaker, "Keeping the Golden Gate Open," 21st Annual American Immigration Lawyer's Association California Chapters Conference, San Francisco, California, November 13, 2008
  • Speaker, "Immigration," Duane Morris' FLSA, Family/Military Leave, and Immigration Workshop for Healthcare Industry Leaders, Chicago, September 16, 2008
  • Speaker, 17th Annual American Immigration Lawyer's Association California Chapter's Conference, November 2004
  • Speaker, 37th Annual Immigration & Naturalization Institute Conference, October 2004