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BAL is once again recognized as a Band 1 immigration law firm in the Chambers USA Guide 2025, earning the highest tier ranking nationwide as well as for its California, Colorado, Massachusetts, Texas and Virginia offices. BAL’s newest office in Georgia was also recognized in its first year with the firm.
Described as “thorough and well-versed” in immigration law and “stellar at handling complexity and strategy” by anonymous respondents, BAL has received a Band 1 ranking by Chambers for 13 consecutive years. Additionally, 19 BAL attorneys were recognized in this year’s guide, including CEO Jeremy Fudge and Managing Partner Frieda Garcia, who were both honored as Eminent Practitioners.
“We set high expectations for ourselves as a firm — ensuring our clients and their employees get the best of BAL, every time,” said Garcia. “Our team pursues the exceptional for clients, foreign nationals and each other every single day. I’m thrilled to see the firm and several of our attorneys continuously recognized for those efforts.”
Rankings are determined through Chambers’ in-depth methodology involving client feedback. BAL clients shared the following assessments of the firm in their interviews with Chambers:
Along with Fudge and Garcia, Chambers’ 2025 individual lawyer recognitions also include BAL’s Ruth Clark, Sharon Cook, Josiah Curtis, Maria DeLapp, Tiffany Derentz, Michael Dubitzky, Michelle Funk, Michelle Gergerian, John Hamill, Jeff Joseph, Jim King, Lynden Melmed, Gabe Mozes, Jessica Mullins-Ta, Maggie Murphy, Edward Rios and Russell Swapp. Cook, Curtis, Funk, Joseph and Swapp all earned Band 1 rankings; Dubitzky, Hamill and Mullins-Ta received first-time rankings.
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BAL is thrilled to share that we’ve been ranked in the highest tier of the Chambers Global Guide 2025 in the Immigration: Business practice area. Described as a “powerful force in corporate immigration…with substantial consular, auditing and compliance experience,” BAL was also ranked in Band 2 in the Immigration in Global: Multi-jurisdictional rankings.
“It’s always an honor to be recognized in the annual Chambers rankings,” said Frieda Garcia, Managing Partner of BAL. “With such a rigorous submission and review process to inform the rankings, the legal community appreciates the weight of the Chambers Guides. We’re thankful for the continued acknowledgement by Chambers and our clients.”
In addition to the firm’s honors, BAL Partners Jeff Joseph and Lynden Melmed were ranked in Band 2 in the Immigration: Business practice area. Chambers describes Joseph as a “very strong, experienced lawyer” with substantial experience in immigration-related litigation. In describing Melmed’s strengths, Chambers says that he knows “how to approach governmental agencies at the highest level.”
Rankings are determined through Chambers’ in-depth methodology involving client feedback.
BAL is proud to share that our firm has been named one of U.S. News’ 2025 Best Companies to Work For in the law firm category. This esteemed list recognizes the country’s top law firms based on how the firms best meet the needs and expectations of their employees.
“We’re proud to have U.S. News validate what we already know — that BAL is a great place to work,” said Jeremy Fudge, CEO of BAL. “Our leadership invests heavily into active listening and employee engagement to create a positive work environment that can adapt to the needs of our people. It’s an honor to be recognized for those efforts.”
To calculate the U.S. News Best Companies to Work For: Law Firms list, U.S. News partnered with Leopard Solutions and Revelio Labs to conduct legal market research and calculate the six metrics used in the list: quality of pay and benefits, work-life balance, job stability, physical and psychological comfort, belongingness and opportunities for professional development.
From these metrics, BAL ranked especially high in comfort and quality of pay.
Those interested in joining the BAL team are invited to explore job openings on our careers page: https://www.bal.com/careers/.
Fast Company named BAL among the 2024 Top 100 Best Workplaces for Innovators in the world, marking its second consecutive year on the list. This recognition validates the firm’s consistent investment in fostering a creative, collaborative work environment focused on powering human achievement.
“Our mission at BAL is clear: to provide an experience that makes a positive difference in people’s lives,” said CEO Jeremy Fudge. “People-centered innovation helps us solve complex immigration challenges for clients and foreign nationals every day. And that focus helps our clients attract and retain skilled talent, empowering more than 2 million people to work and live in the U.S. and abroad.”
BAL keeps innovation at the forefront in our pursuit of the exceptional, from AI-powered technology upgrades that enhance the client and foreign national experience, to our service-oriented oneBAL culture of collaboration. BALers continue to stay ahead of the curve, anticipating and adapting to the ever-changing landscape of immigration policies worldwide while helping our clients navigate those complexities.
Fast Company is in its sixth year of recognizing companies and organizations from around the world that are committed to empowering employees and fostering creative problem-solving. You can view the complete list of honorees here.
In a record-setting year for the firm, 63 BAL attorneys have been recognized by the 2025 edition of Best Lawyers®, with 30 attorneys named as the 2025 “Best Lawyers in America” for immigration law and 33 named as “Best Lawyers: Ones to Watch.” In addition, BAL Partner Sharon Cook was honored as the immigration law “Lawyer of the Year” in Atlanta, GA.
“We are thrilled and proud to see so many of our attorneys recognized with this incredible honor,” said Managing Partner Frieda Garcia. “BAL is always looking to raise the standards of how we support our clients, and it can’t be done without the dedication and persistence of our attorneys. Having 63 attorneys recognized this year is proof of their hard work and expertise.”
The following BAL attorneys were recognized as “Best Lawyers”:
The following BAL attorneys were recognized as “Best Lawyers: Ones to Watch”:
The attorneys will be featured in the 2025 edition of The Best Lawyers in America®, the only purely peer-review guide to the legal profession.
BAL was named one of the most diverse law firms in the United States by The American Lawyer on its 2024 Diversity Scorecard for Minority Representation.
BAL ranked No. 3 out of 208 law firms included in the report.
More than 55% of BAL attorneys are racially or ethnically diverse, including 62% of the firm’s equity partners.
“Diversity is one of BAL’s greatest strengths,” said Jeremy Fudge, CEO of BAL. “We take great pride in our inclusive workplace and the sense of belonging it creates among BALers. Our diversity also enhances our interactions with clients and their employees, who hail from all over the globe.”
This recognition reflects BAL’s continued efforts to build a diverse, equitable and inclusive workplace. The firm fosters inclusivity with its intentional, thoughtful DE&I initiatives that serve to bring together diverse perspectives, experiences and practices.
Additionally, BAL performs internal and external benchmarking to ensure our ability to recruit and retain diverse talent in the current competitive job market. Our recruiting strategy includes outreach to minority students at Historically Black Colleges and Universities as well as other minority student groups, such as BALSA, LALSA and Lavender Law, at universities that BAL partners with for recruitment.
The American Lawyer also recognized BAL as the No. 1 firm on its Women in Law Scorecard.
BAL continued its streak of success in recruiting and promoting women in the legal profession, earning No. 1 on the Women in Law Scorecard for the sixth year running.
“This streak of No. 1 rankings is well-deserved recognition of BAL’s ongoing, strong support of women in the legal profession,” said Frieda Garcia, BAL managing partner. “BAL’s success in fostering a culture of achievement and belonging for women is reflected in my own journey to becoming the first female managing partner of the firm.”
In 2023, women comprised over 64% of BAL attorneys. Half of the firm’s equity partners were women, and 63% of both partners — nearly a quarter of whom are also minorities — and associates were women.
BAL’s sixth-consecutive No. 1 ranking shows it continues to be the law firm of choice for female attorneys. The firm intentionally cultivates a collaborative culture and offers innovative talent development and elite performance transformation programs. These efforts bolster every team member’s personal and professional goals, the latter of which is further supported by leadership development programs that create a supportive environment for BALers to enjoy more fulfilling careers.
The Women in Law Scorecard annually ranks the nation’s largest firms based on their percentages of women attorneys; 247 law firms were included in 2024’s iteration. This year for the first time, the Scorecard was released as part of The American Lawyer’s Diversity Scorecard; previously, the report was published in tandem with the National Law Journal.
BAL ranked in the highest tier of Chambers USA Guide for 12th consecutive year
BAL has been recognized as a Band 1 immigration law firm in the newly released Chambers USA Guide 2024, marking the 12th consecutive year of this achievement.
Described by Chambers as a “powerful force in corporate immigration with the capacity to handle a range of highly complex matters,” BAL achieved a top Band 1 ranking in the Chambers USA Guide as well as its Global Guide for immigration business in the USA.
The firm also celebrates 11 BAL attorneys ranked by the publication, including CEO Jeremy Fudge and Managing Partner Frieda Garcia, who were both honored as Eminent Practitioners.
“We are proud to be recognized as a top-ranked immigration law firm for 12 years running,” said Fudge. “Receiving this honor year-after-year, and seeing our attorneys recognized as well, reaffirms our oneBAL approach: relentlessly and collaboratively delivering the exceptional for clients. That’s all that matters in the end, and we’re thrilled that our clients continue to see that.”
BAL’s California, Massachusetts, Texas and Virginia offices also achieved Band 1 rankings this year. In addition to Fudge and Garcia, Chambers’ 2024 lawyer rankings also include BAL’s Ruth Clark, Josiah Curtis, Maria DeLapp, Tiffany Derentz, Michelle Funk, Jeff Joseph, Lynden Melmed, Maggie Murphy and Edward Rios. We extend our congratulations to five partners joining BAL from Seyfarth Shaw’s immigration practice who also earned Chambers rankings this year: Sharon Cook, Michelle Gergerian, James King, Gabriel Mozes and Russell Swapp.
BAL is honored to be named to the 2024 U.S. News and World Report Best Companies to Work For: Law Firms list. We are proud to be among the 344 U.S. law firms with high scores in six key factors important to job seekers.
See our listing.
DALLAS (Aug. 17, 2023) — Nearly four dozen BAL attorneys have been recognized by Best Lawyers®, shattering the firm’s previous record. A notable 20 attorneys were named “The Best Lawyers in America” for immigration and 27 were named “Best Lawyers: Ones to Watch.”
“To be featured in this prestigious publication means our attorneys’ expertise in service to clients stands out among their peers in their own practice area and geographic location,” said Managing Partner Frieda Garcia. “Recognition of so many of our attorneys as ‘Ones to Watch’ speaks to the success of our commitment to recruit and nurture the best and brightest of rising legal talent.”
The attorneys will be featured in the 2024 edition of The Best Lawyers in America®, the only purely peer-review guide to the legal profession.
“This honor reflects not only our attorneys’ individual excellence but also BAL’s firmwide commitment to pursue the exceptional,” said CEO Jeremy Fudge.
These up-and-coming senior associates were recognized as “Best Lawyers: Ones to Watch” in immigration law for 2024:
About BAL Established in 1980, Berry Appleman & Leiden (BAL) powers human achievement through immigration expertise, people-centered client services, and innovative technology. BAL, with 13 offices across the United States and global coverage in more than 185 countries around the world, operates as a single entity through its oneBAL culture — a uniquely holistic approach, intentionally structured as one team, one brand, one P&L, one standard of excellence, and one unifying technology. This united approach enables the firm to deliver the highest level of knowledge, insights, and resources from across the entire organization. At BAL, we pursue the exceptional. To learn more, visit bal.com.
Media Contact: Emily Albrecht Senior Director — Marketing & Communications ealbrecht@bal.com 469-559-0174