Michele Alcalde’s practice areas consist of U.S. Immigration and Nationality Law, Complex Removal Litigation in Federal Immigration Court, Criminal Law Defense and Municipal Court Litigation.
“I have a true passion for the practice of law. I have strived for 20+ years to enhance my knowledge and wealth of experience in litigating matters. Proudly, my clients’ success stories are a testament to my career. When it comes to crimmigration and Immigration matters overall, I wholeheartedly believe that a lawyer must be completely accessible and courageous in handling this very complex area of law. It is important to me that my clients know me as their unconditional representative; the one willing to put herself on the line for them. It is crucial for me to keep my relationship with my clients close and personal. Due to the highly specialized and litigation-oriented nature of my practice in Criminal, Municipal Court and Immigration matters, it is important for me to always be prepared and to maintain a professional, direct, and cordial relationship with all parties involved in a case. My reputation is extremely important to me; therefore, I am always early for all my Immigration Court appearances and appointments with USCIS. I will prepare you, as my client, at least once before any interview you have before the Immigration Court or USCIS in Newark, NJ or Mount Laurel, NJ. The lines at the Newark Peter W. Rodino Federal Building can be long. My clients are given advance warning to expect delays. I contact my clients directly via cell phone in order to communicate effectively on the day of the interview or hearing.”
Michele’s practice areas consist of U.S. Immigration and Nationality Law, Complex Removal Litigation in Federal Immigration Court, Criminal Law Defense, Municipal Court, and Family Law.
For the past eighteen years Michele has specialized in the defense of foreign nationals facing deportation on various levels. Her experience in the Municipal and Superior Courts of the State of New Jersey, makes her uniquely qualified to appropriately guide and explain to clients the immigration consequences of criminal charges in a criminal court or family court setting, such as controlled dangerous substances and domestic violence. She represents clients throughout New Jersey but focuses on matters in Monmouth County predominantly. She counsels clients in the impact aggravated felonies and crimes involving moral turpitude have when it results in mandatory detention by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). She appears frequently in Immigration courts on complex matters.
Michele is a former Municipal Court Prosecutor for the Cities of Newark and Paterson, New Jersey. She was also appointed by the Office of Attorney Ethics and served as a member of the District XI Ethics Committee from 2008-2010. On March 27, 2012, she was appointed by the New Jersey Supreme Court to the Municipal Court Certification Committee, which is a seven-member committee designed to prepare the examination and review process for all attorneys in New Jersey wishing to be Certified as Municipal Court Trial Attorneys. She is an active executive committee member of the Immigration Law Section of the New Jersey State Bar Association (NJSBA).
Her memberships include the American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA) and the Federal Bar Association. She has served as a panelist for the New Jersey State Bar Association and Federal Bar Association lecturing on Immigration Law, where she has instructed other attorneys on how best to represent clients on complex issues of law combining criminal, family and immigration. Her most recent publication is, In Status and Out of Status, An Immigration Primer for the Family Law Practitioner, New Jersey Family Lawyer Volume 31 page 107 (February 2011). For the past seven years Michele has committed herself to lecturing on numerous panels designed to teach other lawyers the practical procedures and pitfalls related to client representation in specific fields when there are related immigration consequences. From NJSBA ICLE seminars on New Jersey Municipal Court practice, Federal Bar Association and AILA seminars on the intersection of Immigration and Criminal Law, to addressing the Judicial College of New Jersey with regards to the intersection of immigration in Family Law matters. She has built a reputation among her peers and it radiates in every aspect of her lawyering with clients.
Michele earned her Juris Doctorate in Law from Rutgers University School of Law – Camden, NJ in 2000. She is admitted to practice in New Jersey, before the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit and the United States Court of Appeals for the 3rd Circuit. She interned for Senior Federal Appellate Judge Dickinson R. Debevoise and was mentored by The Honorable Steven Morley, Philadelphia Immigration Judge.