Source-backed decision research

Explore how AAO evaluates evidence.

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.

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10,847 decisions / 36,849 findings

Showing 23231–23240

EB-1AEB-1A · MembershipNot establishedAutomated extraction · broader context

Case facts

Other

Issue evaluated

EB-1A · Membership

membership in associations requiring outstanding achievements

Why AAO was not persuaded

Petitioner failed to submit primary evidence of PNTT/PNTDT membership; letters describing selection processes were insufficient to show outstanding achievements as an essential membership condition; Team-M's selection process did not require outstanding achievements; PTBB was unsupported by any documentary evidence; and Letran College membership lacked evidence of outstanding achievement requirements.

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Use the reasoning to identify the specific factual or documentary gap AAO considered material.

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Petitioner failed to submit primary evidence of PNTT/PNTDT membership; letters describing selection processes were insufficient to show outstanding achievements as an essential membership condition; Team-M's selection process did not require outstanding achievements; PTBB was unsupported by any documentary evidence; and Letran College membership lacked evidence of outstanding achievement requirements.
Exact record locator: findings_long.parquet filename_stem=2012-05-02_01_B2203; source_row=14329
Revision: 081d2cac29dcadfec88fdd675d7a0c4294d72b3c
Open source dataset ↗
EB-1AEB-1A · Published materialNot establishedAutomated extraction · broader context

Case facts

Other

Issue evaluated

EB-1A · Published material

published material about the alien in major media

Why AAO was not persuaded

No published material about the petitioner relating to his work was found in the record; submissions were photographs, tournament results listings, or articles that only briefly mentioned him as a competitor; and petitioner failed to establish that any of the sources qualified as professional, major trade publications, or major media.

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Use the reasoning to identify the specific factual or documentary gap AAO considered material.

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No published material about the petitioner relating to his work was found in the record; submissions were photographs, tournament results listings, or articles that only briefly mentioned him as a competitor; and petitioner failed to establish that any of the sources qualified as professional, major trade publications, or major media.
Exact record locator: findings_long.parquet filename_stem=2012-05-02_01_B2203; source_row=14330
Revision: 081d2cac29dcadfec88fdd675d7a0c4294d72b3c
Open source dataset ↗
EB-1AEB-1A · Artistic displayNot established

Case facts

Medicine / Clinical

Issue evaluated

EB-1A · Artistic display

display of work at artistic exhibitions or showcases

Why AAO was not persuaded

This criterion applies to artists, not scientists. Scientific conference presentations are more appropriately addressed under the scholarly articles criterion. It is neither arbitrary nor an abuse of discretion to conclude that presentations at scientific conferences do not qualify as display of work at artistic exhibitions or showcases.

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Use the reasoning to identify the specific factual or documentary gap AAO considered material.

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This criterion applies to artists, not scientists. Scientific conference presentations are more appropriately addressed under the scholarly articles criterion. It is neither arbitrary nor an abuse of discretion to conclude that presentations at scientific conferences do not qualify as display of work at artistic exhibitions or showcases.
Exact record locator: findings_long.parquet filename_stem=2012-05-02_03_B2203; source_row=14351
Revision: 081d2cac29dcadfec88fdd675d7a0c4294d72b3c
Open source dataset ↗
EB-1AEB-1A · Original contributionsNot established

Case facts

Medicine / Clinical

Issue evaluated

EB-1A · Original contributions

original contributions of major significance in the field

Why AAO was not persuaded

Citation counts were minimal (none above nine, many at zero), letters of support did not provide specific examples of how the petitioner's work impacted treatment methods or influenced other researchers, and the evidence did not demonstrate that the petitioner's contributions rise to the level of 'major significance' in the field. Future unpublished work could not establish eligibility as of the filing date.

Why this is useful

Distinguish original work from evidence that the contribution had major significance across the field.

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Citation counts were minimal (none above nine, many at zero), letters of support did not provide specific examples of how the petitioner's work impacted treatment methods or influenced other researchers, and the evidence did not demonstrate that the petitioner's contributions rise to the level of 'major significance' in the field. Future unpublished work could not establish eligibility as of the filing date.
Exact record locator: findings_long.parquet filename_stem=2012-05-02_03_B2203; source_row=14349
Revision: 081d2cac29dcadfec88fdd675d7a0c4294d72b3c
Open source dataset ↗
EB-1AEB-1A · Published materialNot established

Case facts

Medicine / Clinical

Issue evaluated

EB-1A · Published material

published material about the alien in professional or major media

Why AAO was not persuaded

Television interviews lacked video footage, certified translations, and viewership data, and television interviews do not constitute 'published material' with title, date, and author as required. Articles authored by the petitioner are not 'about the alien.' Citing articles are primarily about their own authors' work and are not about the petitioner.

Why this is useful

Use the reasoning to identify the specific factual or documentary gap AAO considered material.

View full reasoning +
Television interviews lacked video footage, certified translations, and viewership data, and television interviews do not constitute 'published material' with title, date, and author as required. Articles authored by the petitioner are not 'about the alien.' Citing articles are primarily about their own authors' work and are not about the petitioner.
Exact record locator: findings_long.parquet filename_stem=2012-05-02_03_B2203; source_row=14347
Revision: 081d2cac29dcadfec88fdd675d7a0c4294d72b3c
Open source dataset ↗
EB-1AEB-1A · AwardsNot established

Case facts

Medicine / Clinical

Issue evaluated

EB-1A · Awards

lesser nationally or internationally recognized prizes or awards

Why AAO was not persuaded

The 3rd Prize was limited to individuals under age 30, excluding experienced professionals, and no evidence showed national/international recognition of that prize beyond the festival context. Student awards reflected only institutional recognition. BTS, YMIC, and CAST certificates were not shown to be nationally or internationally recognized prizes for excellence.…

Why this is useful

Use the reasoning to identify the specific factual or documentary gap AAO considered material.

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The 3rd Prize was limited to individuals under age 30, excluding experienced professionals, and no evidence showed national/international recognition of that prize beyond the festival context. Student awards reflected only institutional recognition. BTS, YMIC, and CAST certificates were not shown to be nationally or internationally recognized prizes for excellence. Travel grants and fellowships were designed to advance the petitioner's work rather than honor past excellence.
Exact record locator: findings_long.parquet filename_stem=2012-05-02_03_B2203; source_row=14345
Revision: 081d2cac29dcadfec88fdd675d7a0c4294d72b3c
Open source dataset ↗
EB-1AEB-1A · MembershipNot established

Case facts

Medicine / Clinical

Issue evaluated

EB-1A · Membership

membership in associations requiring outstanding achievements

Why AAO was not persuaded

BTS membership requires only an online application, two sponsors, and payment of dues—not outstanding achievements. MRCS membership is a necessary training milestone for specialty progression, not an outstanding achievement. ESOT membership requires only professional affiliation, two supporting members, and dues. The foundation membership lacked documentary evidence.

Why this is useful

Use the reasoning to identify the specific factual or documentary gap AAO considered material.

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BTS membership requires only an online application, two sponsors, and payment of dues—not outstanding achievements. MRCS membership is a necessary training milestone for specialty progression, not an outstanding achievement. ESOT membership requires only professional affiliation, two supporting members, and dues. The foundation membership lacked documentary evidence.
Exact record locator: findings_long.parquet filename_stem=2012-05-02_03_B2203; source_row=14346
Revision: 081d2cac29dcadfec88fdd675d7a0c4294d72b3c
Open source dataset ↗
EB-1AEB-1A · Original contributionsNot established

Case facts

Medicine / Clinical

Issue evaluated

EB-1A · Original contributions

original scientific, scholarly, or business-related contributions of major significance

Why AAO was not persuaded

Citation counts were minimal (most articles cited zero times, the highest was nine), and the reference letters, while considered, did not provide specific examples of how the petitioner's work substantially impacted the field. Publications and presentations alone do not demonstrate major significance absent evidence of actual impact. Post-filing and unpublished work could not establish eligibility as of the filing date.

Why this is useful

Distinguish original work from evidence that the contribution had major significance across the field.

View full reasoning +
Citation counts were minimal (most articles cited zero times, the highest was nine), and the reference letters, while considered, did not provide specific examples of how the petitioner's work substantially impacted the field. Publications and presentations alone do not demonstrate major significance absent evidence of actual impact. Post-filing and unpublished work could not establish eligibility as of the filing date.
Exact record locator: findings_long.parquet filename_stem=2012-05-02_04_B2203; source_row=14358
Revision: 081d2cac29dcadfec88fdd675d7a0c4294d72b3c
Open source dataset ↗
EB-1AEB-1A · Published materialNot established

Case facts

Medicine / Clinical

Issue evaluated

EB-1A · Published material

published material about the alien in professional or major trade publications or other major media

Why AAO was not persuaded

The IRIB television interviews lacked video footage, certified translations, and specific viewership data, and television interviews do not meet the plain language requirement for 'published material' with title, date, and author. Articles authored by the petitioner about his own research are not 'about the alien.' Citing articles referencing the petitioner's work are not primarily about the petitioner.

Why this is useful

Use the reasoning to identify the specific factual or documentary gap AAO considered material.

View full reasoning +
The IRIB television interviews lacked video footage, certified translations, and specific viewership data, and television interviews do not meet the plain language requirement for 'published material' with title, date, and author. Articles authored by the petitioner about his own research are not 'about the alien.' Citing articles referencing the petitioner's work are not primarily about the petitioner.
Exact record locator: findings_long.parquet filename_stem=2012-05-02_04_B2203; source_row=14356
Revision: 081d2cac29dcadfec88fdd675d7a0c4294d72b3c
Open source dataset ↗
EB-1AEB-1A · Artistic displayNot established

Case facts

Medicine / Clinical

Issue evaluated

EB-1A · Artistic display

display of the alien's work at artistic exhibitions or showcases

Why AAO was not persuaded

This criterion applies to artists, not scientists. Scientific conference presentations do not qualify as display at artistic exhibitions or showcases. The presentations are more relevant to criterion (vi) for scholarly articles, which the petitioner already met.

Why this is useful

Use the reasoning to identify the specific factual or documentary gap AAO considered material.

View full reasoning +
This criterion applies to artists, not scientists. Scientific conference presentations do not qualify as display at artistic exhibitions or showcases. The presentations are more relevant to criterion (vi) for scholarly articles, which the petitioner already met.
Exact record locator: findings_long.parquet filename_stem=2012-05-02_04_B2203; source_row=14360
Revision: 081d2cac29dcadfec88fdd675d7a0c4294d72b3c
Open source dataset ↗
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