Susan M. MacLean
“I love being able to make [this] complicated and
sometimes messy journey easier for both employers and individuals.”
About Susan
After nearly 30 years in the industry, Susan still loves helping people navigate the complicated and difficult world of US immigration law. She has been an Adjunct Professor at IIT Chicago – Kent College of Law, where she co-taught a course on Family and Employment-Based Immigration Practice, and has presented at over 40 Continuing Legal Education panels on a variety of business immigration topics. Susan has co-authored a number of articles for the American Immigration Lawyers Association and is licensed to practice law in both Illinois and California.
With such a distinguished career, Susan has had many memorable immigration moments over the years, most often they involve the ones that have been approved after going “sideways” with the USCIS. She enjoys the challenge of working on O-1 extraordinary ability petitions. The success of these cases relies on her ability to learn about the foreign national’s field of expertise and present their work and accomplishments in an understandable language for the USCIS to approve the petition.
Since 2005, Susan has been consistently recognized by the Best Lawyers Guide and was named “Chicago Immigration Lawyer of the Year” by Who’s Who Legal in 2015 and 2018. Susan has volunteered for a number of AILA committees, including the Citizenship and Immigration Services committee and the Department of State Liaison committee, and she is a Board Member of the Chicago Theological Seminary.
“I love being able to make [this] complicated and sometimes messy journey easier for both employers and individuals.”
Fun Facts About Susan
- Guilty Pleasure TV Show: Dancing with the Stars
- Early Bird or Night Owl: Early Bird
- Favorite Past-Time involving a Vehicle: Sailing
- Favorite City: London
Education
Bachelor’s Degree in Government
Oberlin College | 1986
Post-Graduate Diploma in World Politics
The London School of Economics and Politics | 1991
Juris Doctor
California Western | 1994
Affiliations
American Immigration Lawyers Association
Member | 1995 – Present
My Team
Karen Heaphey