Who we are
Mona Shah & Associates
MONA SHAH, ESQ.
e-mail: mona@mshahlaw.com
Mehreen Shah, LLB (Hons) or Mona Shah as she is more commonly known.
Born in the UK, Mona graduated from the University of Northumbria in England in 1990. Mona was admitted as a Solicitor of the Supreme Court of England & Wales in 1993, and was admitted to the New York Bar and the United States Federal Bar in 1997.
While in England, Mona trained with various firms before her appointment as a Crown Prosecutor with the British Crown Prosecution Service, Here she became proficient in advocacy, handling several complex cases. After moving to New York in 1995, she established her own law firm in New York City in 1997. The firm handles legal matters for clients worldwide. Her firm also has a London affiliate office which allows for the representation of European, Middle-Eastern and South Asian clients.
Mona has over 17 years of legal experience, with more than 13 years concentrated in U.S. immigration and family law and litigation.
Mona’s extensive knowledge of all facets of U.S. immigration law, and her practical expertise ranges from specialist business petitions to complicated, multi-issue deportation and removal litigation. Her firm, Mona Shah and Associates, represents individual, high profile and corporate clients from all over the world.
Mona is highly proficient and experienced in EB-5 law and practice, and is the author of a forthcoming book for investors on the EB-5 laws and procedures. She has hands-on experience setting up and establishing EB-5 Regional Centers, as well as an impressive track record of many years handling complex immigration matters, including private non-regional center investor cases. In addition, she has dealt with complex, multifaceted RFE’s for both the Regional Centers as well as for the Investor.
Mona was also one of the 4 original founders of New York City Regional Center and the only Immigration Attorney on the team. Mona also founded the New York Immigration Fund, RC; her firm, Mona Shah & Associates, exclusively handled the Times Square Hotel project.
Mona Shah & Associates handles the EB-5 Investor petitions for multiple regional centers.
Mona’s substantial litigation background includes her representation of clients in both state and federal courts on the trial and appellate levels. She has litigated in over 9 states and the District of Columbia, and handled complex immigration law appeals before the United States Circuit Courts of Appeal for the Second, Third, Fifth, and Eleventh circuits. Mona has wide-ranging litigation experience, including Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) as well as trial-court experience on both the trial and appellate levels, in both State and Federal courts She also advises on UK Immigration law.
Mona has authored and published numerous articles including EB-5 related articles. She has written and spoken extensively on immigration law. She is often featured as a guest speaker at legal seminars and on local television news programs. Ms. Shah has previously hosted a cable television program focused on immigration issues. She has been honored for her work by various groups and non for profit organizations.
Mona is a member of legal organizations in both the United States and England (UK). She is a member of the Law Society of England and Wales; the American Immigration Lawyers Association; the Federal Bar Association; the New York County Lawyers Association; the American Bar Association; and the International Bar Association.
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YI SONG, ESQ. – Attorney
e-mail: yi@mshahlaw.com
Yi is a licensed attorney in the US; she also passed the national bar examination in Peoples Republic of China. Yi was admitted to practice as an Attorney and Counselor at Law in the State of New York in January 2011 and before the Southern District Court of New York in November 2011. She was granted admission to the bar in Peoples Republic of China in February 2009.
Yi Song has an impressive resume. Yi graduated from Georgetown University Law Center in Washington, DC with the Masters of Law degree in 2010. Yi has been the recipient of a number of honors and awards. At Georgetown Law School, she received honor for her legal research and writing. During her studies for the dual Bachelor’s degrees in Law and English Literature from Beijing Foreign Studies University, she received the highest scores and honor from Intellectual Property Law class and she represented her school in the prestigious Philip C. Jessup International Law Moot Court Competition and made the Top 5 Team in the China Round.
Yi’s legal experience includes securities litigation and class action lawsuits. She also worked for Professor Susan Roosevelt Weld at Georgetown Law-Asia writing and researching on the Open Government Information Act in China. Yi practiced with PricewaterhouseCoopers Beijing office as a tax attorney. She worked at the largest Chinese law firm King & Wood in the Intellectual Property Litigation Department. Yi clerked at the Supreme Court of People’s Republic of China, the highest court in the country.
Yi’s legal practice focuses on EB-5 law and Securities Law Compliance issues. She is experienced working with regional centers, private investors, project developers and intermediate entities both in the US and in China. Yi has authored and co-authored numerous published articles on EB-5 financing and SEC rules on general solicitation and unregistered broker/dealer liability.
Yi is currently a member of the American Bar Association, New York State Bar Association, the American Immigration Lawyers Association. Yi enjoys canvas oil painting, reading and traveling. She is a native speaker of mandarin Chinese. She also speaks fluent English and basic French.
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Peta-Gaye Ricketts, ESQ. – Attorney
e-mail: petagaye@mshahlaw.com
Peta-Gaye completed her undergraduate studies at Macalester College in St. Paul, Minnesota, where she graduated Magna Cum Laude with a Bachelor of Arts degree in International Studies. She earned her Juris Doctor (J.D.) from the Washington College of Law (WCL) at the American University located in Washington, D.C. Peta-Gaye also holds a Master of Arts degree (Magna Cum Laude) in International Affairs (with a focus in Development) from American University. While at WCL, Peta-Gaye Ricketts served as a Student Attorney in the Immigration Law Clinic where she assisted new U.S. asylees in finalizing their paperwork, including filing derivative petitions and adjustment of status applications with USCIS.
Peta-Gaye previously worked at the highly-rated Murthy Law Firm in Owings Mills, Md, where she represented Fortune 500 companies, small and mid-sized companies, and individuals undergoing the U.S. immigration process. Prior to this, Peta-Gaye worked at several law firms in the Washington. DC. metropolitan area, where she handled a variety of immigration matters including family-based, adjustment of status, naturalization, and employment-based cases.
Peta-Gaye’s interest in immigration law stems from her personal experience first as an F-1 studetnt visa applicant for school in the U.S and thereafter as an H-1B non immigration temporary worker. As a visa applicant from Kingston, Jamaica, she found the process somewhat intimidating and complex and hopes to offer as much guidance as possible to those who must encounter this process prior to studying in the U.S. Ms. Ricketts enjoys the practice of immigration law because the field serves as a platform to assist individuals and families realize their dreams of visiting, studying, and residing in the the U.S. She is fluent in Spanish.
Peta-Gaye was admitted to the Maryland Court of Appeals in December, 2006. She is currently a member of the American Immigration Lawyers Association, the Maryland State Bar Association, and the American Bar Association.
Peta-Gaye enjoys travel and has indeed traveled extensively throughout her life. In fact, she briefly resided in Santiago, Chile and Seville, Spain during college and law school. She credits these experiences to making her the open-minded, multicultural person she has become.
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Rebecca Singh, ESQ. – Attorney
e-mail: rebecca@mshahlaw.com
Rebecca, admitted to practice law in the State of New York, is a 2010 graduate of Florida Coastal School of Law, where she received her Juris Doctorate degree and International and Comparative Law Certificate. During her years at FCSL, Rebecca received the Book Award for the highest grade in Legal Research and Writing, and was on the Deans List. She also participated in the International Law Society, South Asian Law Students Association, and the Caribbean Law Society. In 2009, Rebecca was selected as a brief writer for the prestigious Philip C. Jessup International Law Moot Court Competition. Proud to be a Hokie, Rebecca graduated from Virginia Tech in 2007, with a Bachelor of Science in Psychology and magna cum laude honors.
As a college student, Rebecca interned with the Law Offices of Haller & Hudson and the Office of the Public Defender in Georgetown, Delaware. However, she quickly fell in love with immigration law after working with The Ruiz Law Firm, LLC during her last year of law school. She continued in the field by working with the Community Legal Aid Society in Delaware, and subsequently joined the team at Mona Shah & Associates.
In her spare time, Rebecca loves to read, and watch Broadway shows and foreign films. She enjoys attending all events, anywhere from sporting to cultural events. Rebecca speaks English, Guyanese and Caribbean Hindustani, and basic Spanish.
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SHAGUFTA SHAIKH, BCom - Head of Human Resources and EB-5 Consultant
e-mail: shagufta@mshahlaw.com
Shagufta is an experienced paralegal and EB5 consultant. Having graduated from the University of Bombay with a Bachelors degree in Commerce (B. Com), Shagufta went on to complete a Masters in Computer Programming before joining Mona Shah & Associates in November 2003.
With over seven years of legal experience, LexisNexis awarded Shagufta a Paralegal Certificate of Mastery. Over the years Shagufta has attended numerous legal seminars and is currently enrolled with the New York Paralegal School in a Dual-Diploma Program (Paralegal/Litigation Specialist Assistant Program). She is proficient in Legal Research and Writing, Civil Procedures, Corporate Law, Criminal Law and in Immigration Law.
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Support Staff
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Lawrence Chan- Director of Marketing, China Operations
e-mail: lawrence@mshahlaw.com
Lawrence Chan graduated from University of Hawaii with a Bachelor of Business Administration degree in Finance. He is also a computer software engineer educated at Stony Brook University in New York. Lawrence is a seasoned businessman with over 15 years of experience in business finance, management, and operations. He has owned, managed, and operated various companies in different businesses ranging from IT industry, Real Estate, Fashion to Entertainment, Retail, and Tourism.
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NAWEED RIAZ, ESQ.
e-mail: nriaz@silvers.co.uk
Naweed Riaz, LLB (Hons) was admitted as a Solicitor of the Supreme Court of England & Wales in 1990.
Having worked at a Top 500 law firm in London, Naweed has extensive experience in all aspects of contentious business and was involved in complicated commercial litigation, including mediation and dispute resolution, acting predominantly for blue chip clients and wealthy individuals. He is experienced in corporate law, acquisitions and mergers, the incorporation of companies, commercial property and construction/building contracts for multinational corporations as well as individuals.
During his 20+ years in practice, Naweed has also specialized in all areas of matrimonial law. Naweed is a member of the prestigious Law Societys Panel of Family Law. This specialist panel is acquired only after years of practice and expertise. Such expertise has assisted our handling of international child abduction and international child custody battles, from both the UK as well as the US. He has extensive experience in all elements of family work. Naweed has conducted very involved and protracted child custody disputes involving multi jurisdictions, including the U.S. He continues to deal with complex, high net worth cases on matrimonial breakdown, investigating and gathering information on property and money disputes.
Naweed has undertaken numerous aspects of immigration work and has considerable knowledge in this area. His expertise covers investment visas and business visas, including proficiency in obtaining green cards through investment through regional centers in the U.S.