Search a substantial collection of case-specific reasoning, then narrow it by petition, field, legal issue, or date.
This expanded collection favors source-backed access over perfect automated classification. Fields, labels, summaries, and relevance may contain errors; records marked ‘broader context’ need extra care. Review the cited source before relying on any record. These appeals and motions do not show approval odds or denial rates, and are not legal advice or a prediction.
10,847 decisions /36,849 findings
Showing 21981–21990
EB-1AEB-1A · Scholarly authorshipNot established
Case facts
Medicine / Clinical114 citations
Issue evaluated
EB-1A · Scholarly authorship
scholarly articles
Why AAO was not persuaded
AAO disagreed with the director and found the criterion not met. The record contained only a single article, a brief response to a letter to the editor (which is not a scholarly article), and conference presentations without evidence of publication in professional or major trade journals. The regulation requires scholarly articles in the plural.
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AAO disagreed with the director and found the criterion not met. The record contained only a single article, a brief response to a letter to the editor (which is not a scholarly article), and conference presentations without evidence of publication in professional or major trade journals. The regulation requires scholarly articles in the plural.
Exact record locator: findings_long.parquet filename_stem=2013-02-19_02_B2203; source_row=15864 Revision: 081d2cac29dcadfec88fdd675d7a0c4294d72b3c
AAO affirmed the director's conclusion but on its own reasoning: performing routine employment-based performance reviews does not constitute serving 'as a judge of the work of others' in a formal judging capacity as required by the plain language of the criterion.
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AAO affirmed the director's conclusion but on its own reasoning: performing routine employment-based performance reviews does not constitute serving 'as a judge of the work of others' in a formal judging capacity as required by the plain language of the criterion.
Exact record locator: findings_long.parquet filename_stem=2013-02-19_02_B2203; source_row=15862 Revision: 081d2cac29dcadfec88fdd675d7a0c4294d72b3c
EB-1AEB-1A · Original contributionsNot established
Case facts
Medicine / Clinical114 citations
Issue evaluated
EB-1A · Original contributions
original contributions of major significance
Why AAO was not persuaded
AAO found counsel's claims that the director ignored certain evidence were unfounded. Additionally, the 114-citation count postdated the petition filing date and could not be relied upon. Even if the meta-study were a contribution of major significance, the regulation requires contributions in the plural, which the record did not establish.
Why this is useful
Distinguish original work from evidence that the contribution had major significance across the field.
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AAO found counsel's claims that the director ignored certain evidence were unfounded. Additionally, the 114-citation count postdated the petition filing date and could not be relied upon. Even if the meta-study were a contribution of major significance, the regulation requires contributions in the plural, which the record did not establish.
Exact record locator: findings_long.parquet filename_stem=2013-02-19_02_B2203; source_row=15863 Revision: 081d2cac29dcadfec88fdd675d7a0c4294d72b3c
EB-1AEB-1A · Published materialNot establishedAutomated extraction · broader context
Case facts
Other
Issue evaluated
EB-1A · Published material
published material in professional or major trade publications or other major media
Why AAO was not persuaded
Most articles lacked the required title, date, and author information. With two exceptions (one lacking a certified translation), the articles were not primarily about the petitioner but about the petitioner's band or events. The petitioner also failed to demonstrate that the publications constituted major media, as the ranking webpage reflected website visit frequency rather than circulation numbers.
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Most articles lacked the required title, date, and author information. With two exceptions (one lacking a certified translation), the articles were not primarily about the petitioner but about the petitioner's band or events. The petitioner also failed to demonstrate that the publications constituted major media, as the ranking webpage reflected website visit frequency rather than circulation numbers.
Exact record locator: findings_long.parquet filename_stem=2013-02-19_01_B2203; source_row=15854 Revision: 081d2cac29dcadfec88fdd675d7a0c4294d72b3c
lesser nationally or internationally recognized prizes or awards
Why AAO was not persuaded
The translation was again submitted without a certification of translator competence, failing 8 C.F.R. § 103.2(b)(3). Even setting aside the certification defect, the evidence only established the award is highly regarded within the context of its genre/competition, without sufficient documentation that the award itself is nationally or internationally recognized.
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The translation was again submitted without a certification of translator competence, failing 8 C.F.R. § 103.2(b)(3). Even setting aside the certification defect, the evidence only established the award is highly regarded within the context of its genre/competition, without sufficient documentation that the award itself is nationally or internationally recognized.
Exact record locator: findings_long.parquet filename_stem=2013-02-19_01_B2203; source_row=15852 Revision: 081d2cac29dcadfec88fdd675d7a0c4294d72b3c
NIWNIW · Waiver on balanceNot establishedAutomated extraction · broader context
Case facts
Mathematics / StatisticsPhD15 citations
Issue evaluated
NIW · Waiver on balance
national interest substantially greater than U.S. worker
Why AAO was not persuaded
AAO found that counsel's unsupported assertions about inability to obtain labor certification were rejected, including by reference to ETA Form 9089. Witness letters contained vague, speculative, and template-based assertions about potential future impact rather than demonstrated present impact. Only two to five truly independent citations existed in the record.…
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AAO found that counsel's unsupported assertions about inability to obtain labor certification were rejected, including by reference to ETA Form 9089. Witness letters contained vague, speculative, and template-based assertions about potential future impact rather than demonstrated present impact. Only two to five truly independent citations existed in the record. The petitioner failed to show her past record justifies projections of future benefit to the national interest to a substantially greater degree than an available U.S. worker.
Exact record locator: findings_long.parquet filename_stem=2013-02-19_07_B5203; source_row=15878 Revision: 081d2cac29dcadfec88fdd675d7a0c4294d72b3c
beneficiary qualifications per labor certification
Why AAO was not persuaded
The labor certification required a bachelor's degree in computer science or related field and 60 months of progressive experience in software development. The beneficiary received his degree on December 8, 2001, but the employment letters did not establish five years of qualifying post-degree experience as a software engineer or developer by the June 14, 2009 priority date.
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The labor certification required a bachelor's degree in computer science or related field and 60 months of progressive experience in software development. The beneficiary received his degree on December 8, 2001, but the employment letters did not establish five years of qualifying post-degree experience as a software engineer or developer by the June 14, 2009 priority date.
Exact record locator: findings_long.parquet filename_stem=2013-02-19_06_B5203; source_row=15875 Revision: 081d2cac29dcadfec88fdd675d7a0c4294d72b3c
The beneficiary's W-2 wages fell short of the proffered wage in 2009, 2010, and 2011. The petitioner's 2009 net income was -$5,484,245 and net current assets were -$2,023,240. Cafeteria plan benefits do not augment W-2 wages. Bank statements are not qualifying evidence. Gross receipts and projected earnings cannot substitute for net income.…
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Use the reasoning to identify the specific factual or documentary gap AAO considered material.
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The beneficiary's W-2 wages fell short of the proffered wage in 2009, 2010, and 2011. The petitioner's 2009 net income was -$5,484,245 and net current assets were -$2,023,240. Cafeteria plan benefits do not augment W-2 wages. Bank statements are not qualifying evidence. Gross receipts and projected earnings cannot substitute for net income. The petitioner also had multiple pending I-140 petitions and failed to demonstrate ability to pay aggregate proffered wages.
Exact record locator: findings_long.parquet filename_stem=2013-02-19_06_B5203; source_row=15874 Revision: 081d2cac29dcadfec88fdd675d7a0c4294d72b3c
AAO found 2010 net income sufficient but 2011 net income ($37,233) and net current assets ($60,589) were both well below the proffered wage of $110,510.40; total 2011 revenue ($89,999) did not even cover the wage. The assets of a related company could not be considered because corporations are separate legal entities.…
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Use the reasoning to identify the specific factual or documentary gap AAO considered material.
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AAO found 2010 net income sufficient but 2011 net income ($37,233) and net current assets ($60,589) were both well below the proffered wage of $110,510.40; total 2011 revenue ($89,999) did not even cover the wage. The assets of a related company could not be considered because corporations are separate legal entities. Wages paid to another employee could not be used because there was no evidence the beneficiary would replace that worker, those wages were already paid, and even if considered they would be insufficient given 2011 total revenue was less than the proffered wage. The totality-of-circumstances Sonegawa analysis did not favor the petitioner.
Exact record locator: findings_long.parquet filename_stem=2013-02-19_03_B5203; source_row=15872 Revision: 081d2cac29dcadfec88fdd675d7a0c4294d72b3c
six years of qualifying work experience per labor certification
Why AAO was not persuaded
The AAO found employment letters either failed to describe job duties, failed to specify full-time employment, came from co-workers rather than employers, conflicted with the Form ETA 750, or covered periods after the priority date, leaving insufficient evidence of six years of qualifying experience.
Why this is useful
Use the reasoning to identify the specific factual or documentary gap AAO considered material.
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The AAO found employment letters either failed to describe job duties, failed to specify full-time employment, came from co-workers rather than employers, conflicted with the Form ETA 750, or covered periods after the priority date, leaving insufficient evidence of six years of qualifying experience.
Exact record locator: findings_long.parquet filename_stem=2013-02-19_04_B5203; source_row=15873 Revision: 081d2cac29dcadfec88fdd675d7a0c4294d72b3c