Gerald Karikari is admitted to practice law in the state of New York, as well as in the United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit. Mr. Karikari emigrated from Ghana, West Africa, as a young child. As such, the plight of immigrants is something Mr. Karikari is deeply concerned about. In addition, Mr. Karikari is passionate about community affairs. Mr. Karikari is also a Property Manager and Director of various real estate businesses such as Woods and Ruff Global LLC, outfitting him with an extensive depth of knowledge in all things real estate management. He serves on numerous executive boards such as the Rosedale Jets Football Association, Success Consultancy Group, and Merrick Academy Charter School. Our office staff members speak multiple languages other than English such as Twi, Ga Mandarin, Fuzhou, Spanish, French, Mandingo, Burbur, Malentu, Punjabi, Hindu and Urdu. Many other languages can be accommodated upon request.

Becoming an immigration attorney was a natural choice for Nicole. Having moved back and forth from the United States to Italy as a child, she relates intimately with the immigrant experience. As a result, she has always been drawn to helping others, fascinated by different languages and learning about different cultures around the world. Nicole began her career in the role of Judicial Law Clerk in the New York, New Jersey, and Arizona Immigration Courts through the Attorney General’s Honor Program, helping immigration judges draft decisions. This role gave her great insight into the judicial process and has proven beneficial to her clients. Subsequently, she worked in small and large boutique immigration firms, and volunteered at a nonprofit organization serving abused immigrant women. Nicole provides professional and compassionate representation in all aspects of removal defense, family-based, and employment-based immigration matters. She has assisted businesses in obtaining H-1B (temporary worker), L-1A (intra-company transferee), and O-1 (extraordinary ability). She has also worked with religious organizations to obtain R-1 (religious worker) non-immigrant visas for their ministers, nuns and other occupations such as choir directors. She has also assisted individuals seeking to create their own companies in the United States to obtain E-2 (investor) nonimmigrant visa. As for Permanent Residence employment cases, she has won cases for businesses seeking to hire professional employees through the Labor Certification (PERM) process, for religious organizations requiring permanent Religious Workers, as well as foreign nationals who self-petitioned based on Extraordinary Ability and Exceptional Ability where their services benefit the United States through a National Interest Waiver. In removal defense cases, Nicole has successfully represented clients in cancellation of removal, asylum, termination of proceedings and prosecutorial discretion. She is particularly passionate about asylum cases, as she believes in fighting for those who have been persecuted, whether for political or religious beliefs, race, nationality or sexual orientation. In addition to representing clients during their removal proceedings at the Immigration Court, Nicole has won numerous cases on appeal before the Board of Immigration Appeals, the Administrative Appeals Office, and U.S. Courts of Appeals. In family-based cases, Nicole helps U.S. Citizens and Permanent Residents through the process to petition on behalf of their foreign national relatives to either adjust status in the United States through the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), or to obtain Immigrant Visas through U.S. Embassies and U.S. Consulates. She also represents abused men, women and children in self-petitions for green cards under the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA). For clients who have been found ineligible for green cards based on a fraud or misrepresentation, unlawful presence, or criminal history, Nicole provides representation in waivers of inadmissibility, demonstrating that their inability to obtain a green card would result in extreme hardship to their U.S. Citizen or Permanent Resident spouses or parents. Where the USCIS has unreasonably delayed processing regarding immigration petitions and applications, Nicole has succeeded in obtaining final adjudication on such cases through litigation in U.S. District Courts. In addition to tirelessly advocating for her clients, Nicole is a sought-after public speaker on immigration issues.

Chiddy Onyia is a seasoned healthcare entrepreneur, operator, and senior legal executive with more than 15 years of in-house and law firm experience. A three-time General Counsel, she has advised high-growth startups, health systems, medical device companies, manufacturers, payors, physician groups, and health insurance companies. Her practice includes healthcare law, corporate governance, regulatory compliance, strategic transactions, market expansion, commercial contracting, data licensing, digital health, data privacy, and platform risk. Known for translating legal strategy into business outcomes, Ms. Onyia serves as a trusted advisor to boards, founders, and executive teams navigating growth, risk, and transformation. Ms. Onyia previously provided General Counsel services to healthcare and technology companies at GenCo Legal and held legal leadership roles with Alma and Quartet Health, two late-stage, venture-backed digital health companies. At Quartet, she led legal and commercial operations for the acquisition of Innovatel, managed deal structure, diligence, and negotiations, and supported a $60 million Series D fundraising round. At Alma, she led national payer negotiations with Optum, UnitedHealth, and Cigna and helped guide the legal, strategic, and regulatory aspects of a $130 million Series D raise. She also built legal, compliance, and HR functions to support expansion across all 50 states. Earlier in her career, Ms. Onyia served as commercial counsel for NYU Langone Medical Center and NYC Health + Hospitals, advising on enterprise contracting, compliance, procurement, population health, and major strategic transactions. She holds a J.D. from the University of Cincinnati College of Law, is licensed in New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut, and completed an Executive MBA at INSEAD. She is also the founder of IgniteHer Inc., an organization dedicated to women’s leadership, financial literacy, career development, and mentorship. To discuss how Ms. Onyia can assist with healthcare, corporate, compliance, or strategic legal matters, call 212-739-0611 or complete her online contact form.

George Akst received his B.A. in Economics from Boston University in 1972. He attended The Hague Academy of International Law in the Netherlands in 1973 and received his J.D. from Fordham Law School in 1976 where he was a member of the Urban Law Journal. He was admitted to the New York State Bar in 1977 and is admitted to practice in the New York Federal Courts and US Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit. He has been a Member of the American Immigration Lawyers Association since 1984 where he has spoken on numerous topics, including visas for artists, athletes, and entertainers. He is a member of the Union Internationale Des Avocats, the Paris based International Bar Association, where he has spoken on such various issues as U.S. visa investment opportunities and human trafficking. Mr. Akst is a former Adjunct Professor of Business and Real Estate Law, at both Long Island University and at the Borough of Manhattan Community College from 1979-1981.

Leslie Akst earned her B.A. in Psychology from Wellesley College in 1973. She graduated from Princeton University with an M.A. in Psychology in 1975, and from Fordham Law School with a J.D. in 1978 where she was also a member of the Law Review. As a member of the Fordham Law Review, she published an article on the New York Art Market. Mrs. Akst is admitted to the New York State and Federal Bars. Before joining Akst & Akst, she clerked for the Surrogate of New York County. Upon joining Akst & Akst, she acted as a closing counsel for Chemical Bank’s residential mortgage department for four years where she represented the bank in numerous mortgage closings.

Marc Taylor is a practicing attorney in New, York. He handles all phases of immigration, primarily including corporate and family immigration, permanent residence, and citizenship applications.

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