Opinion ID: 3053913
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Balam-Chuc’s Application

Text: Balam-Chuc is a native citizen of Mexico who entered the United States without inspection or parole around August 1997 at or near San Ysidro, California. On May 8, 2000, in Tacoma, Washington, he married Rebekah A. Hinman (“Mrs. Balam-Chuc”), a United States citizen. The Balam-Chucs have two children, both U.S. citizens, currently ages six and three. In 2001, Balam-Chuc worked to solidify his immigration status in the United States. Mrs. Balam-Chuc hired the DeDamm Law Firm to file a family visa petition and application for adjustment of status on behalf of her husband.2 She 2 Many of the events summarized here come from facts laid out in a letter dated February 19, 2003, from Mrs. Balam-Chuc to the Department of 14946 BALAM-CHUC v. MUKASEY signed and dated an Immediate Relative Visa Petition, Form I-130, on March 20, 2001, and submitted it to her attorney with the appropriate documents and fees. Mindful of the April 30th deadline, Mrs. Balam-Chuc called the law firm on March 30, 2001, and she was assured that the petition would be hand-delivered on time. INS, however, did not receive the I-130 petition until June 13, 2001, almost a month and a half after the statutory deadline. The Balam-Chucs learned that the petition had been filed late when Balam-Chuc appeared for his adjustment interview in July 2002. Balam-Chuc turned to the DeDamm Law Firm, but no one could provide proof that the petition had been submitted prior to the deadline. Gabriel Banfi, who supervised the preparation of the I-130, claims that a DeDamm paralegal submitted the application to the INS (now the Department of Homeland Security (“DHS”)) prior to April 30, 2001. However, he acknowledges that the application might have been returned because it was not accompanied by the appropriate filing fee, as required by 8 C.F.R. § 103.2(a)(1). Regardless of Banfi’s claims, neither the Balam-Chucs nor anyone at the firm could provide proof that the petition had been submitted prior to the deadline, and on appeal, Balam-Chuc apparently concedes that he cannot provide evidence of a timely filing. Although the INS eventually approved the I-130 petition on October 14, 2002, it ultimately denied Balam-Chuc’s application for adjustment of status based on the untimely filing of the corresponding petition.