Brad Thomson

Brad grew up in Ann Arbor, Michigan, and graduated from the University of Michigan in May 2004. After graduation, he lived in Honduras, Costa Rica, and Mexico, where he taught English. In 2005, Brad launched his career in immigration as an AmeriCorps Vista Volunteer in Miami, Florida, assisting with refugee relocation. He has gained significant experience working at four immigration law firms and in a law school immigration clinic. Brad’s tasks have exposed him to various permanent resident and temporary visa applications. Brad has been selected as a Rising Star in immigration by "Super Lawyers" Magazine each year from 2017 - 2022. Brad is an immigration consultant to the Mexican Consulate in Detroit to provide immigration legal representation for Mexican nationals. Brad is an Immigration Referral Panel Attorney for the University of Michigan Student Legal Services. Furthermore, Brad volunteers as an immigration consultant to the Washtenaw County Office of the Prosecutor and served as a Board Member for the Washtenaw County Sheriff Citizens Advisory Board. Brad was the media chair of the American Immigration Lawyers Association for the state of Michigan and founded the Washtenaw County Bar Association Immigration Law Section. Brad is fluent in Spanish and graduated from Wayne State University Law School in Detroit, Michigan.

Loribel Bautista-Caraballo

Loribel Bautista-Caraballo was born in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic. She has a bachelor’s degree in Political Science and a Juris Doctor from the University of Puerto Rico. Her own experience with the immigration process steered her towards immigration law, choosing to work at the immigration clinic during law school and later attaining a Master of Law degree in Immigration and Naturalization Law. She worked for 3 years with the United States Department of Health as a Public Health Advisor for the Hurricane Maria Recovery Mission in Puerto Rico. At Immigration Law PLLC, her tasks include accompanying clients to USCIS interviews and representing clients before the Immigration Court.

Mikelina Fran Gjergj

Mikelina Fran Gjergj was born in Shkoder and raised in Tirane, Albania. She earned her BA in Law and Society with Summa Cum Laude from John Jay College. During her undergraduate years, she was a fellow with the 2019 Ron Moelis Social Innovation Fellowship, a recipient of the Alfred Siegel Scholarship, the founder and inaugural president of the student organization Immigrant Women Justice Alliance, and a member of The National Society of Leadership and Success. In addition, Mikelina served as a volunteer leader with the Mayor’s Office of Immigrant Affairs and worked as an immigration advocate intern at Her Justice. Currently, she is furthering her professional career as an immigration paralegal at Immigration Law, PLLC where she is working on marriage/family members petitions, national visa center petitions, provisional waivers, and DACA. Additionally, Mikelina is conducting research where she studies Albanian women’s perceptions of domestic violence and how those perceptions corrrelate to their help-seeking behaviors. She plans to pursue a law degree, and simultaneously a PhD in Sociology. Mikelina sees herself advocating on behalf of immigrant women and teaching and lawyering for gender justice.

Alex Francia

Alex was born in the Washington, D.C. area, where he grew up with friends from countries across the world. He moved with his family to Michigan in 2016, continuing to build relationships with people from many different nations. Alex has an A.A.S in Paralegal Studies, a B.A. in Spanish, and an master's in theology. In our office, Alex works on a wide variety of different immigration cases, including family-based green card applications in and outside the U.S., work and travel permits, DACA renewals, waivers, U visas, citizenship applications, and immigration court cases.

Rachel Fagan

Rachel grew up in southeast Michigan and is a graduate of the University of Michigan. She received high distinction for her academic success and has a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science and International Studies focusing on public health in the Caribbean. In the past, her professional life has primarily revolved around civil rights activism, including work on several political campaigns and initiatives in Ann Arbor. In addition to working at Immigration Law PLLC, she is practicing to improve her Spanish proficiency and plans to attend law school. Rachel’s chief responsibilities in the office are writing hardship waivers, completing marriage petitions, and working on other USCIS applications such as DACA, permanent residence, and advance parole. She also helps out with specialized immigration court cases.

Ben Frey

Ben Frey grew up in Ann Arbor, Michigan, and holds a Bachelor's Degree in Sociology with Honors and Spanish from the University of Michigan. Additionally, he holds a Master's degree in Translation and Interpreting from New York University. Thanks to these studies and nearly three years of living in Spanish-speaking countries, Ben has become fluent in Spanish and gained significant French fluency. Much of his scholarly and professional work has been social-work adjacent and focused on issues facing vulnerable populations. Ben deeply enjoys putting his language skills to work with purpose-driven organizations, and professionally, he has been primarily involved in linguistic pursuits such as English as a Second Language (ESL) education, translation, and interpreting. He began working in the immigration legal field with a firm based in Quito, Ecuador, where he was responsible for I-601A inadmissibility waivers and FOIA requests. At Immigration Law PLLC, Ben handles various cases, including marriage petitions, hardship waivers, work permits, and immigration court applications. Outside the office, Ben enjoys reading, exercising, traveling, and coaching youth rowing through Skyline High School and Washtenaw Rowing Center in Ann Arbor.