The recent and widely reported arrest of workers at the Lowe's construction site in Essex Junction, Vermont who apparently are illegal aliens sparked strong debate among some Vermont conservatives who generally may agree on policy matters but find themselves on opposite sides of the immigration debate.  As an immigration lawyer, this does not surprise me.  Immigration policy crosses party lines and socio-economic lines. Read the full post....

Awards presented last night at the annual dinner for the Lake Champlain Regional Chamber of Commerce highlight the prominence of nonprofits in the Vermont economy and business community.  Read the full post....

Yet another exciting nonprofit is coming to life in the Burlington area.  CarShare Vermont announced today that it has acquired a fleet of 8 vehicles to launch its car-sharing service on December 8.  This is particularly exciting for me because I have been sharing a car with our 17-year-old son (and now our 16-year-old son, too) since February 2007.  According to AAA, it costs about $7,000 a year to own, maintain and operate a car - and I just don't want to be a three-car family.  We live right in town, near a bus line, on the bike path, and only a 30 minute walk to my office.  Read the full post....

For the third time in 4 years, once again this year our beloved South Burlington High School Rebels boys soccer team made it to the State Division 1 soccer championship and lost the title game yesterday in overtime and/or penalty kicks after a tie score.  Our sons Rob and Brad play on the team and it's a heartbreaker to see them go through this again.   Read the full post.... 

Lately I've been noticing the term "thought leader" and thinking about what it means for the Vermont economy.  Read the full post....

We start work this week to renovate a portion of our offices in the historic Stone Store building on Battery Street in Burlington.  The Stone Store building has been a fixture of the Burlington commercial district since the mid-1800s.   One of the exciting aspects of the project is that it utilizes green materials and current socially responsible office practices, such as maximizing natural light for each work space.   Read the full post....

On October 14, 2008, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced that TN status now will be approved for periods of up to three years. Click here to see a copy of the USCIS announcement with FAQs on TN status.

 This is a significant new benefit for U.S. employers. Until now, TN approvals were only issued for one year at a time.  Read the full post....

The economic health of the higher education sector may become a critical factor in Vermont's economic stability. Higher education accounts for a large percentage of Vermont's economy and employment (click here to read my prior posting on that subject). I have been following reports in the Chronicle of Higher Education about the impact of the current banking crisis on colleges and universities, many of which rely heavily on invested endowments and foundation grants.  Read the full post....

I finally scored UVM hockey season tickets after 11 years on the waiting list and the timing couldn't be better! 

First, some background:  I went to Cornell University, and I love attending college hockey games.  Read the full post....

One of our law firm's retired partners, Emily Morrow, recently returned from several years in Sydney, Australia.  To her amazement, she learned that Vermont is known in Australia as a hotbed of innovation for nonprofits, also known as non-governmental organizations or NGOs.  Emily recently shared her insights with a group assembled by the Vermont Community Foundation (VCF). Read the full post....