Curtis Y. Chow is a member of the Immigration, Cross-Border, and Employment Practice Groups of Ogletree Deakins, representing employers in all aspects of U.S. immigration law and compliance, as well as international employment matters. Based in the Columbia, South Carolina office, Curtis represents clients across the United States and internationally in a broad range of industries, including technology, retail, manufacturing, automotive, air transportation, biotechnology/biopharmaceuticals, education, entertainment, and professional services.
Curtis’ practice focuses on global workforce mobility matters, including work permit, visa, residency, and compliance issues. He regularly assists employers in planning and executing strategies to employ foreign nationals in the United States, as well as to transfer employees between multinational operations abroad. In relation to U.S. immigration matters, Curtis frequently handles temporary work visa matters (including H-1B, L-1, E-2, O-1, and TN visas amongst others), as well as employment-based permanent residence matters (including permanent residence based upon Extraordinary Ability, Outstanding Researcher, Multinational Manager/Executive, National Interest Waiver, and PERM-based permanent resident categories). With regard to global mobility matters, Curtis frequently assists multinational companies with assigning employees to various international jurisdictions, and advises clients on a broad range of legal issues, including work permits, compliance with foreign labor and employment laws, and other related issues faced by companies with operations overseas.
In addition to his mobility and immigration practice, Curtis possesses a broad range of experience in immigration compliance matters, regularly counseling employers in I-9 and E-Verify issues, including internal audits, government investigation, general compliance issues, and immigration related discrimination issues. In addition to assisting employers with proactive compliance measures, Curtis also defends companies in federal employment discrimination claims, including actions alleging discrimination, retaliation, and harassment.