Blog

Minami Tamaki LLP Partner Olivia Serene Lee was elected last week to the Board of Governors for the American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA), the national association of more than 15,000 attorneys and law professors who practice and teach immigration law. As a board member, she will help t...

Minami Tamaki LLP is representing former National Football League (“NFL”) players regarding the class action settlement in the matter In Re: National Football League Players' Concussion Injury Litigation, MDL No. 2323.  The settlement resolved allegations that the NFL was responsible for brain in...

The Minami Tamaki LLP law firm and the Minami Tamaki Yamauchi Kwok & Lee (MTYKL) Foundation announced a $20,000 donation to support COVID-19 relief efforts in India. The donation supported a May 27 fundraiser organized by the South Asian Bar Association of North America and others, with proceeds ...

Minami Tamaki LLP attorney Lisa P. Mak authored an article, “Protecting Whistleblowers: Litigating Claims under Labor Code Section 1102.5,” in the May 2021 issue of Advocate Magazine. In the article, Lisa writes that allowing employees to freely report and disclose potentially illegal practices i...

The Asian Pacific American Institute for Congressional Studies (APAICS) honored Minami Tamaki LLP Senior Counsel Dale Minami with the Inaugural Norman Y. Mineta Lifetime Achievement Award during its Virtual APAICS 27th Anniversary Awards Gala Dinner on May 13, 2021.  The Award was renamed this ye...

As the country continues to confront a history of racial injustice, deeply rooted in the legacy of slavery and systemic racism, today, Governor Gavin Newsom appointed Minami Tamaki LLP Senior Counsel Donald K. Tamaki and four other individuals to serve on the newly formed Task Force to Study and ...

India Travel Ban On April 30, 2021, the Biden Administration announced a COVID-19 public health travel ban prohibiting entry of foreign nationals who have been physically present in India within 14 days of their arrival to the United States. The India travel ban went into effect at 12:01 AM EDT o...

L.A. Theatre Works has released a new audio play by Jeanne Sakata titled “For Us All” based on the true story of the Korematsu v. United States coram nobis effort led by a team of young—mostly Asian American—attorneys that included Dale Minami and Donald K. Tamaki. Purchase the audio play for $20...

On March 30, USCIS announced that they have completed the selection process for this year's H-1B lottery. If your company filed any H-1B registrations this year, you will be able to view the status of each case in the myUSCIS portal. Cases that indicate “Selected” have been selected and the ne...

On March 19, 2021, a new COVID-19 paid sick leave law was signed by Governor Gavin Newsom, which allows California employees to receive up to two weeks of supplemental paid sick leave, in addition to regular paid sick leave, if they need to take time off for: Self-isolation or self-quarantine;...

Minami Tamaki LLP is investigating Emeryville, California-based Plum Organics after a congressional subcommittee report released on February 4, 2021, found dangerously high levels of toxic heavy metals, including inorganic arsenic, cadmium, lead, and mercury, in baby food products from Plum Organ...

It was five years ago today on March 19, 2016, that we lost our dear friend and this firm's former law partner Garrick S. Lew. His absence is still deeply felt to this day. We remember Garrick on this anniversary with love to his family – wife Diane Hiura, sons Dillon and Brandon, father Share, s...

DHS Public Charge Rule No Longer in Effect On March 9, 2021, DHS announced that it will no longer defend its 2019 public charge rule in pending lawsuits. On March 11, 2021, USCIS provided an advance copy of a final rule removing the 2019 public charge rule and restoring the regulatory text to ...

The Great East Japan Earthquake hit Japan's Tōhoku region ten years ago on March 11, 2011, at 2:46 p.m. Japan Time (March 10, 9:46 p.m. Pacific Time). 15,900 people died from the magnitude 9.0 earthquake and subsequent tsunami. 9,500 people were missing in the aftermath of the disaster. A decade ...

Minami Tamaki is investigating reports of numerous injuries and pet fatalities linked to the Seresto flea and tick collar.  According to United States Environmental Protection Agency (“EPA”) documents, Seresto collars have allegedly been linked to approximately 1,700 pet fatalities, 75,000 pet in...

Minami Tamaki LLP is investigating reports of a data breach tied to Accellion, Inc. (“Accellion”), a Palo Alto, California-based file transfer and service company.   Accellion's flagship product, File Transfer Appliance (“FTA”), is a platform used for “secure” third-party transfers of computer fi...

E-3 PETITIONS NOW ELIGIBLE FOR PREMIUM PROCESSING Snapshot: What is happening? USCIS' premium processing service is now available for E-3 Petitions (Form I-129) for extension or change of status. Who does it impact? E-3 Petitions filed with a USCIS Service Center in the U.S...

How to Prepare for the H-1B Lottery Registration – February 26, 2021, 11 AM US Pacific Time Please join us to learn more about the H-1B registration system and what you can do to prepare.  MT attorneys will provide a comprehensive overview of the H-1B registration system, which was newly introduc...

Delayed: Effective Date of New Wage-Based H-1B Selection Final Rule On Feb 8th, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), published a rule that will delay the effective date of the new Wage-Based H-1B Selection Final Rule to December 31, 2...

Widespread COVID-19 vaccination is considered essential for many employers to safely bring employees back to physical worksites.  This has raised questions about whether employers can require employees to get vaccinated as a condition of returning to the workplace.  The Equal Employment Opportuni...

BIDEN REINSTATES COVID-19 TRAVEL BAN AND ADDS SOUTH AFRICA Effective January 26, 2021, President Biden reinstated a COVID-19 related restriction on travel from Brazil, Ireland, the UK and the Schengen Area. The Trump Administration had scheduled this ban to be lifted on January 26, 2021. Effe...

Minami Tamaki is investigating Midwestern Pet Foods, Inc. after numerous reports that dogs have become ill or died from eating the company's Sportmix brand pet foods. The Food and Drug Administration (“FDA”) has reported that at least 70 dogs have died after consuming Sportmix products. The FDA h...

DOL Issued Final Rule Will Dramatically Increase Prevailing Wages On January 14, 2021, the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) published a final rule entitled, “Strengthening Wage Protections for the Temporary and Permanent Employment of Certain Aliens in the United States,” that will change the ...

It is that time of year!  That is, it is time to get started on H-1B petitions for the FY2022 H-1B quota—new H-1B cases to be filed starting in April 2021.  As this process involves strict deadlines, please review the below carefully.  Please provide the names and email addresses of your ini...

On January 8, 2021, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) will publish a final rule that will modify the H-1B Fiscal Year Cap Selection “Lottery” process. Instead of a random, computerized H-1B cap lottery, the new process will prioritize selection of foreign nationals whose offered wage is i...