About Our Lawyers

TOGETHER WE'LL FIND A SOLUTION!

The law office of Popkin, Shamir & Golan in Los Angeles was established in 1966.  At the time, Congress made major changes in the immigration law by enacting our present Immigration & Nationality Act (INA).  This law, in its basic structure, is still the governing law today.

Since then, the firm has been devoted to the practice of immigration and nationality law.

When the firm started representing aliens, there were less than five lawyers practicing in the field.

Today, the firm is a full-service immigration law firm assisting people to achieve permanent legal status in all available categories (Family, Employment, Registry, Asylum, etc.), or temporary status under various non-immigrant visas (Employment, Student, others). The firm also helps immigrants with becoming citizens.

An important side of the firm's work is in defending people against removal (deportation) in the various courts (Immigration Courts and Federal Courts). Deportation cases can be brought also against legal immigrants holding Green Cards, not only against illegal immigrants who never had Green Cards. In this area, the firm's motto has always been that: TIME IS ON THE SIDE OF THE ALIEN. The longer we can keep the alien here legally, the better it is for the alien and his or her family: sooner or later something positive might happen to resolve the case in favor of the alien.

Dr. Shamir Popkin still remembers her first two cases of a Filipino client who was arrested in Mexico after trying to re-enter the U.S. and of a Jordanian student who almost lost his student visa. She saved both of them. Over the years, the firm has represented individuals from all over the world and accompanied them in their quest to obtain permanent residence in the U.S. while their home countries underwent major political changes and upheavals: Philippines, Iran, Turkey, Hong Kong, Taiwan and many others.

The firm represented Iranians who left Iran before and after the Revolution, Filipino veterans who fought on the side of America during World War II and were unjustly denied U.S. citizenship. The firm established for a while an office in Manila. The firm obtained asylum for Burmese students during the political upheaval in Burma, now known as Myanmar, and for Eastern Europeans fleeing from communism before the fall of the Soviet Union.

The firm had an office in Hong Kong, where many immigrated to the U.S. before the British possession was returned to China. The firm obtained “amnesty” for thousands of workers agricultural and others during the Amnesty period passed during the Reagan administration.