Steven M. Ladik possesses 38 years of experience helping corporate and individual clients develop and implement strategies to address complex immigration matters.

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He is Board Certified in Immigration & Nationality Law by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization (1989-Present). For 28 consecutive years, he has been listed in Best Lawyers® in America.

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Mr. Ladik has developed a highly-regarded national sports industry practice, providing immigration-related counsel and representation to professional athletes, teams and leagues in a variety of sports, including tennis, golf, soccer, squash, basketball, baseball, figure skating, hockey, football, and track and field.  

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He has served pro bono as the principal immigration advisor to the Greater Dallas Chamber of Commerce through its International Business Council.

   

Professional/Community Leadership

Mr. Ladik has held multiple leadership positions with the American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA). From 2001-2002, he was AILA President. From 1994-2010, he was a member of the AILA Board of Governors. He is a Past Chair of the AILA - INS, National Liaison Committee, a Past Chair of the AILA Texas Chapter (1992-1993), and a Past Co-Chair  of the AILA - INS Southern Region Liaison Committee (1990-1992).

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He is also a Past Chair of the Board Certification Examinations Committee, Immigration & Nationality Law, State Bar of Texas.

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From March 2011 through 2020, he served as a member of the North Texas Regional Board of UNICEF USA. 

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Selected Sports Immigration Achievements

From 2011 to 2013, Mr. Ladik developed and implemented a comprehensive immigration strategy to bring hundreds of personnel to participate in the America's Cup sailing event using multiple visa categories for accountants, lawyers, sail makers, software engineers, ground crew, sailors and others.

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He also advised and assisted a national retailer in preparing an I-9 strategy to work with hundreds of franchise operations across the country.

 

Presentations

"RFEs, NOIDS and Strategic Lawyering, Part 1: P-1As and P-1Ss", Sports Immigration Law Conference, Orlando (September 2021).

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"P-1 Filing For Individual Sports", AILA Rome Chapter Virtual Presentation (June 2021).

 

“O-1s and P-1s for the Bold and the Beautiful”, AILA Arts, Culture, Entertainment & Sports Virtual Conference (September 2020).

 

“RFEs, NOIDS, and Strategic Lawyering: P-1As and P-1Ss”, Sports Immigration Law Conference, Orlando (March 2020).

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“We Are the Champions: Athletes, Coaches and Agents”, AILA Annual Conference, Orlando (June 2019).

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“The Universe of Supporting Documents and the Issues That Hide Within”, AILA Central Florida Chapter, Orlando (March 2019).

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"Advances Strategies for O-1s and P-1s", AILA Rome District Chapter, Feb. 2018 (Madrid Spain)

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"Sports Industry Immigration Update", Sports Lawyers Association 2017 Annual Conference, May 2017 (Denver)

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"Immigration Options for Investors and Entrepreneurs", AILA Fall Conf., Oct. 2013 (Austin) 

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"SMU Town Hall on Immigration Reform", SMU Dedman School of Law, Sept. 2013 (Dallas)

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"Strategies for Athletes, Artists, Entertainers and Other Extraordinary Individuals", AILA Annual Conf., June 2011 (San Diego) 

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"Athlete Visas", AILA Annual Conf., June 2010, (National Harbor, Md.)

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"Visitor Visa Issues", AILA Annual Conf., June 2010 (National Harbor, Md.)

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"Fundamentals of U.S. Immigration for Temporary Workers and Business Visitors", Global Personnel Alliance, May 2010 (Washington, D.C.)

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"Athlete Visas", AILA Audio Seminar, March 2010

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"B-1 Business Visitors", AILA Annual Conf., June 2009 (Las Vegas)

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“USCIS-DOS Issues", Global Personnel Alliance, May 2009 (Washington, D.C.)

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"Record Retention for Employers", DallasHR, Oct. 20, 2011 (Dallas)

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"B-1/B-2 Visitors", AILA Annual Conf., June 2008 (Vancouver, Canada)

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"Immigration Issues: How to Handle Foreign Athletes Playing in the U.S. and American Athletes Playing Abroad", Sports Lawyers Assoc., May 2008 (San Francisco)

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"Corporate Immigration Enforcement Forum", with Julie Myers, Asst. Secretary, Immigration Customs Enforcement, Greater Dallas Chamber of Commerce, April 2008 (Dallas) 

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"Immigration Law and Employer Compliance", Sterling Education, March 2008 (Dallas)

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"Workplace Enforcement and ICE", AIL Natl. Conf., June 2007 (Orlando)

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"Business Immigration Update", Texas Immigration Coalition, May 2007 (Plano, Texas)

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"Legislative Update", Houston H.R. International Roundtable, March 2007 (Houston)

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"Exploring Immigration Reform Issues", League of Women Voters of Dallas, Sept. 2006 (Dallas)

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"The Great Immigration Debate", John Goodwin Center of Political Studies and the Dallas Committee on Foreign Relations, May 2006 (Dallas)

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"Business Immigration Reform Panel Discussion", Intl. Business Council, Greater Dallas Chamber of Commerce, Oct. 2005 (Dallas)

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"Employment-Based Petitions Exempt From Labor Certification", AILA Natl. Conf., June 2005 (Salt Lake City)

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"U.S. Visas for Entertainers & Athletes", AILA Teleconference, May 2005

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"Immigration Debates -Bipartisan Proposals and Differing Viewpoints", Finnish-American Business Guild, Jan. 2005 (Dallas)

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