Photo of David A.M. Ware

David A.M. Ware

Practice Areas:

  • Business and Academic Immigration
  • Family Immigration
  • Removal Defense
  • Asylum & Humanitarian Immigration
  • Nationality
  • Nonimmigrant Visas

Biography

David Ware graduated from Yale College, summa cum laude, in 1977. He received his J.D. from the University of Texas School of Law in 1981, after spending a year abroad studying Mexican law pursuant to a Fulbright-Hayes scholarship. He is admitted to practice in the State of Louisiana, but as an attorney whose practice is limited to federal law, may lawfully practice in any state of the Union. He has practiced immigration and nationality law exclusively since 1982, either in solo practice or as a partner. He has diverse experience in representing companies, universities, medical schools and many other entities, and individuals, regarding immigration concerns. He has for many years been elected to the Bar Register of Preeminent Lawyers, and has been selected as one of the Best Lawyers in America since 2000. For 10 years, Mr Ware has been placed among the top immigration attorneys in Louisiana by New Orleans Magazine, and in 2005 and 2008, City Business magazine selected him as one of the top 50 "Leaders in Law" in Louisiana, the only immigration attorney ever so chosen. He has also held the highest rating, AV, in the attorneys' directory, Martindale Hubbell, for over a decade. Mr Ware is a recognized leader among immigration attorneys in practice areas of interest to higher education and business immigration, and he has for many years served as a mentor in these areas for other immigration attorneys through the American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA) Mentorship Program.
 
Mr Ware has been active in the National Association of Foreign Student Affairs: Association of International Educators (NAFSA) since 1985. In addition to holding several AILA and NAFSA leadership positions, he has received awards for outstanding service to NAFSA Region III (South Central States) five times, as well as commendations for service from both the Miami Chapter of the Florida Association of International Educators, the Texas State NAFSA chapter (twice), and the Federal Bar Association Immigration Law Section. He presents approximately 50 times per year, serving as an expert speaker at AILA, NAFSA, NACUA, FBA, and many other organizations’ international, regional conferences and local conferences and meetings.

He currently is serving a third term on the American Immigration Lawyers’ Association’s Liaison Committee to the US Department of Labor, as well as the Healthcare Professionals/Physicians Committee.

He also has served for several years on the Advisory Board of the Federal Bar Association’s Immigration Law Section, as well at the Editorial Board of NACUA Notes, a publication of the National Association of College and University Attorneys.

He is a member of IMMLAW, the Immigration Lawyers’ Consortium, a select group of the finest boutique firms in the US.

He serves on the International Medical Graduate Taskforce, dedicated to improving the legal situation of foreign physicians in the US.

Mr. Ware has participated as an expert in several legal proceedings over the decades. Most recently he served as expert in a domestic proceeding where the issue was the nature of Optional Practical Training accorded F-1 students following their studies.

Mr. Ware currently divides his time between his offices in Metairie, Louisiana and Seattle, Washington.

Education

  • The University of Texas School of Law, Austin, Texas
    • J.D. - 1981
    • Honors: E. Ernest Goldstein Award for Best Contribution to Texas International Law
  • Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut
    • B.A. - 1977
    • Honors: summa cum laude
    • Honors: Distinction in Major
    • Honors: Phi Beta Kappa
    • Honors: Bildner Prize in Portuguese
    • Major: Latin American Studies
  • Universidad Iberoamericana, Mexico City
    • Honors: Fulbright-Hayes Scholarship 1979-1980
    • Major: Peruvian History
    • Major: Archaeology
    • Major: Literature

Bar Admissions

  • Louisiana, 1981

Professional Associations

  • American Immigration Lawyers Association, Vice Chair, Committee on International Studies, 1995 to Present
  • American Immigration Lawyers Association, TSC Limited Committee, 1999 to 2001
  • American Immigration Lawyers Association, NAFSA Region III Liaison, 1992 to Present

Current Employment Position

  • Of Counsel

Past Positions

  • Smith, Martin & Ware, Partner, 1986 to 1988
  • Fox and Ware, Partner, 1984 to 1986

Languages

  • Spanish
  • Portuguese

Honors

  • Preeminent Lawyers
  • Best Lawyers in America
  • Top 50 "Leaders in Law" in Louisiana
  • Who’s Who International’s Top Corporate Immigration Attorneys
  • AV Rating Martindale-Hubbell
  • Member Bar Register of Preeminent Lawyers

Classes & Seminars

  • DOL Meeting, Washington D.C., January 23, 2015
  • 2005 AILA Winter CLE. Maui, Hawaii, January 30, 2015
  • Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, February 5-6, 2015
  • AIEA Annual Conference, Association of International Education Administrators, Washington, D.C., February 16, 2015
  • Georgia-Alabama AILA Chapter, Atlanta, GA, February 20, 2015
  • CUPA-HR, College and University Professional Association for Human Resources, Nashville, TN, March 2,2015
  • AILA Chicago Chapter, Chicago, IL, March 9, 2015
  • TAIE, Tennessee Association of international Educators, Nashville, TN, March 13, 2015
  • Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI, March 19, 2015
  • Florida State University, Tallahassee, FL, March 21, 2015
  • Tallahassee Community College, Tallahassee, FL, March 23, 2015
  • IMMLAW, Washington, D.C., March 27, 2015
  • Tulane University, New Orleans, LA, April 9, 2015
  • DOL Meeting, Washington, D.C., April 15, 2015
  • Hult International Business School, San Francisco, CA, April 21, 2015
  • University of California-Berkeley, San Francisco, CA, April 22, 2015
  • UPPER Midwest AILA chapter, Minneapolis, MN, April 24, 2015
  • FBA, Federal Bar Association, Memphis, TN, May 15, 2015
  • TSC Engagement, Dallas, TX, May 19, 2015
  • NAFSA Annual Conference, Boston, MA, May 25-29, 2015
  • University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA, June 2,2015
  • AILA Annual Conference, Washington, D.C, June 17-21, 2015
  • NACUA, National Association of College and University Attorneys. Washington, D.C., June 27, 2015
  • International Advising Summit, Portland, OR, July 31, 2015
  • University of Alaska – Fairbanks, AK, October 9, 2015
  • NAFSA Region I, Boise, ID, October 19-22, 2015
  • IMMLAW. Chicago, IL, October 23, 2015
  • NAFSA Region XII, Honolulu, HI, October 26-30, 2015

Pro-Bono Activities

  • ACLU Louisiana Cooperating Attorney, 1983
  • New Orleans Task Force on the Rights of Aliens, 1985 to 1988