Beyond Borders: The Immigration Evaluation Podcast

Knowing whether you're a factual witness or an expert witness is one of the clearest ways to protect your client, your license, and the case itself, and most clinicians were never taught the difference. On this episode of Beyond Borders, I dig into something I see all the time, when a well-meaning attorney asks a treating therapist to write a letter that answers what is really a legal question. It sounds reasonable, but it quietly asks the clinician to step into a role they never signed up for. So I slow down and sort out what actually separates these two roles, why the line matters so much for your client and your license, and the cleaner path that protects everyone. In this episode, you'll learn: What separates a factual (treating) witness from an expert (forensic) witness The kinds of letters that quietly cross the line Confidentiality versus privilege, and who actually holds it How to know which hat you're wearing before you write a word If you have ever felt unsure about what you can and can't put in a letter, today's episode brings real clarity.    📘 Not Sure Where to Start as an Evaluator? Download our Free Guide to learn the essentials and see if this work is the right fit for you. 👉 Get the free guide   If you want a clear, ethical, and clinically grounded framework for writing evaluations that protect your clients and your license, the Expert Training in Immigration Evaluations will give you the structure and support you need. 👉 Learn More Here   📲 Stay Connected and Grow Your Expertise 🔹 Instagram 🔹 Facebook🔹 LinkedIn  🌟 Join our private Facebook community for deeper discussions, peer support, and access to valuable training opportunities.👉 Click here to join the group   🎙️ Monthly Consultation Group Join our monthly consultation group for case support, guidance, and community with clinicians doing immigration evaluations   📍 Immigration Psych Eval Directory Get listed in our provider directory and connect with attorneys seeking immigration evaluations. Join the directory.  

What gets your N-648 approved or quietly denied usually has nothing to do with your diagnosis. I asked Douglas Pierce, who spent 33 years inside USCIS, adjudicated tens of thousands of applications, and trained the very officers who read our forms, and his answers changed how I'll certify from here on.  For twenty years, I've signed N-648s and sent them into a black box, so having someone from the other side of the desk answer my questions honestly was the conversation I wish I'd had two decades ago. Here's some of what we cover: ✅Why officers can't challenge your diagnosis, only the consistency of your documentation ✅How copy-paste boilerplate quietly invites scrutiny ✅The age and residency exceptions many of us overlook ✅Why a clinical addendum on your letterhead strengthens your work If you do this work, or you're building toward it, you'll know exactly what to tighten before you sign your next N-648.    📘 Not Sure Where to Start as an Evaluator? Download our Free Guide to learn the essentials and see if this work is the right fit for you. 👉 Get the free guide   If you want a clear, ethical, and clinically grounded framework for writing evaluations that protect your clients and your license, the Expert Training in Immigration Evaluations will give you the structure and support you need. 👉 Learn More Here   📲 Stay Connected and Grow Your Expertise 🔹 Instagram 🔹 Facebook🔹 LinkedIn    🌟 Join our private Facebook community for deeper discussions, peer support, and access to valuable training opportunities. 👉 Click here to join the group   🎙️ Monthly Consultation Group Join our monthly consultation group for case support, guidance, and community with clinicians doing immigration evaluations   📍 Immigration Psych Eval Directory Get listed in our provider directory and connect with attorneys seeking immigration evaluations. Join the directory.  

Do psychological evaluations still matter under the new USCIS policy? I'm joined today by Maria Lurye, who served on the immigration bench in New York from 2017 through 2025, and has reviewed hundreds of evaluations across asylum, VAWA, U and T visa, and cancellation of removal cases. Before taking the bench, she spent nearly a decade as assistant chief counsel with ICE, litigating removal cases and writing appellate briefs. She now consults with attorneys on case strategy and removal defense and has seen these cases from every angle. In today's episode, you'll learn:  ✅The recent USCIS policy memo reshaping how officers approach adjustment of status cases ✅Where psychological evaluations fit into this new landscape ✅Three specific questions to anchor your reports on when these cases arrive ✅And why every report you submit is a reflection of your professional reputation that will follow you from case to case (whether you know it or not) This episode will help you write evaluations that hold up under scrutiny and understand exactly what happens to them once they leave your hands.  📘 Not Sure Where to Start as an Evaluator? Download our Free Guide to learn the essentials and see if this work is the right fit for you. 👉 Get the free guide If you want a clear, ethical, and clinically grounded framework for writing evaluations that protect your clients and your license, the Expert Training in Immigration Evaluations will give you the structure and support you need. 👉 Learn More Here 📲 Stay Connected and Grow Your Expertise🔹 Instagram 🔹 Facebook🔹 LinkedIn  🌟 Join our private Facebook community for deeper discussions, peer support, and access to valuable training opportunities. 👉 Click here to join the group 🎙️ Monthly Consultation Group Join our monthly consultation group for case support, guidance, and community with clinicians doing immigration evaluations 📍 Immigration Psych Eval Directory Get listed in our provider directory and connect with attorneys seeking immigration evaluations. Join the directory.