Varinia Guzman

*Currently licensed in California only. Practice limited to federal immigration law.

Varinia Guzman’s experience in business immigration includes representation of Fortune 500 and multinational corporations in various industries, emerging start-ups, mid-size companies and immigrant entrepreneurs. She provides expertise across a wide variety of employment-based nonimmigrant and immigrant petitions, and PERM labor certification, adjustment of status, consular processing and naturalization applications. Varinia also advises U.S. employers on corporate compliance, I-9 audits and employer sanctions. Her human resources and in-house immigration experience allows her insight into the business needs of global companies while connecting the bridge between immigration law and the greater business environment.

Varinia is an active member of the American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA). She was a contributing author to an AILA publication – AILA’s Guide to Immigration Law for Paralegals. She has previously served as a Liaison to the U.S. Consulate in Vancouver on behalf of AILA’s Canada Chapter and as a Law Student Division Liaison with AILA’s Southern California Chapter. She is also an invited speaker at AILA’s annual conferences and volunteers at naturalization clinics offered to local immigrant communities.

Before joining Ogletree Deakins, Varinia served as a Senior Attorney for an immigration boutique firm and the largest corporate immigration firm in the world with a focus on representation of global high-technology companies. She also worked in Canada specializing in U.S. immigration law for businesses and multi-national companies. In particular, she represented a Big Four accounting and consulting firm and its global companies with the management and delivery of business immigration services for all aspects of nonimmigrant and immigrant cases within a high-volume environment.

During law school, Varinia served as a Judicial Extern to the U.S. Department of Justice, Executive Office of Immigration Review, Immigration Court in San Diego. She also completed a pro bono internship with the San Diego Volunteer Lawyer Program. She received the American Jurisprudence Awards in Immigration Law, Legal Writing, European Union Law, and Women & International Human Rights. In addition, she was given the Outstanding Law Graduate Award by the National Association of Women Lawyers and the Wiley W. Manuel Certificate for Pro Bono Legal Services. Varinia participated in international moot court competitions and earned a Certificate in Global Legal Studies in conjunction with her Juris Doctor.

At Cornell University, Varinia was the recipient of an annual scholarship from Mobil Corporation in New York City where she interned with the Corporate Human Resources Department during her summer and winter sessions. After graduation, she worked in-house for Accenture in the New York Metro area and for SAP Labs U.S. in Silicon Valley as part of her dual role performing legal compliance in business immigration and in human resources. Varinia was also a Congress-Bundestag Scholar prior to commencing her undergraduate studies.