This is an AAO appeal decision — a case denied once and appealed. It shows how the framework is applied; it is not the filing population.
The Petitioner, a legal consultant, proposed to create a legal consulting business, apparently oriented toward Brazil's economy and the U.S. legal services industry.
Field: legal consulting · Read the decision (uscis.gov)
Prong 1 — national importancenot established · dispositive
“the Petitioner's proposed endeavor stands to sufficiently extend beyond his business and clientele to impact his field or the industry more broadly at a level commensurate with national importance”
“his legal consultant business activities stand to provide substantial economic benefits in the United States ... or that his endeavor would offer the region or its population a substantial economic benefit through employment levels or business activity”
AAO decision text
How the evidence was treated
- motion resubmission · discounted
“The Petitioner states no new facts on motion, and submits no new supporting evidence.”
AAO decision text - other · discounted
“The Petitioner makes vague and general assertions that we disregarded unspecified evidence.”
AAO decision text
Where this case turned
- Economic claims unsupported · p1 — job/revenue projections with no corroborating basis
- Local, not national scope · p1 — impact confined to clients / a region
Notable
This is a motion decision (motion to reopen and reconsider) following a prior May 2022 AAO appellate dismissal, not a fresh appeal; the AAO incorporates its prior 'Law' section by reference and does not readjudicate the merits de novo. The Petitioner raised a Fourth Amendment argument that the AAO noted was likely intended to invoke the Fifth Amendment. The prong 1 failure discussed here is drawn from the AAO's summary of its own May 2022 decision, quoted within this motion decision.
Authorities this decision leans on
From the doctrinal survivor set — 187 authority tests across 47 distinct authorities cleared the differential-lift gates. Only those appear here.
- 8 C.F.R. 103.5
- 8 C.F.R. 103.5(a)(1)(i)
- 8 C.F.R. 103.5(a)(2)
- 8 C.F.R. 103.5(a)(3)
- 8 C.F.R. 103.5(a)(4)
Cases in adjacent profiles
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- The Petitioner proposed to start a project management consultancy in the United States that would help small and mid-siz
- The Petitioner proposed to establish a legal consultancy in the United States focused on alternative dispute resolution