H-1B Under Siege: Rebuilding Corporate Immigration Strategy for High-Skilled Talent in 2026

Sarah J. Hawk, Partner | Barnes & Thornburg

Sarah J. Hawk is a partner in Barnes & Thornburg’s Atlanta office and chairs the firm’s Immigration and Global Mobility practice. She counsels multinational corporations and individuals on complex immigration matters, securing visas and permanent residency for corporate leaders, researchers, and artists, and brings decades of experience in global workforce management.

• Education & Credentials

Ms. Hawk earned her J.D. from Georgia State University College of Law in 2000. She also holds an M.A.T. (1993) and a B.A., magna cum laude (1992), from Agnes Scott College. She is admitted to practice in Georgia and before the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Georgia.

• Recognition & Leadership

Ms. Hawk is recognized in The Best Lawyers in America for Immigration Law, including the 2027 edition, and has been recognized by Best Lawyers since 2017. She was selected to the Super Lawyers Rising Stars list for Immigration in 2010, and she serves as chair of Barnes & Thornburg’s Immigration and Global Mobility practice.

• Professional Involvement

Sarah is actively involved in advancing the practice of business immigration through leadership, education, and professional service. She is a frequent presenter at national and regional conferences on immigration law and regularly advises employers on best practices for immigration compliance and global mobility. Her professional involvement extends to collaborating with multinational corporations, universities, healthcare organizations, and research institutions to develop strategic immigration programs, as well as participating in initiatives that promote workforce compliance and international talent mobility.

• Experience

Her practice spans employment-based petitions, including B business visitor and E-2 investor visas, EB-1 Outstanding Researcher and Extraordinary Ability cases, I-9 and E-Verify compliance, and the development and implementation of corporate immigration policy for global workforces.

Julia Bialy, Staff Attorney | Barnes & Thornburg

Julia Bialy is a staff attorney in Barnes & Thornburg’s Chicago office, practicing in the firm’s Labor and Employment Department. She supports employers navigating employment-based immigration and workforce compliance matters, handling highvolume business immigration work in close coordination with attorneys and corporate stakeholders.

• Education & Credentials

Ms. Bialy earned her J.D. from George Washington University Law School in 2025 and her B.A. in Political Science, cum laude, from Monmouth University in 2020. She is admitted to practice in the District of Columbia. She speaks Polish.

• Recognition & Leadership

Julia Bialy has established herself as a trusted member of Barnes & Thornburg’s Labor and Employment Department, where she supports employers in navigating complex employment-based immigration and workforce compliance matters. Her practice demonstrates leadership through the management of sophisticated, high-volume immigration cases, strategic collaboration with attorneys and corporate stakeholders, and her contributions to the firm’s immigration thought leadership. Julia also authors and contributes to legal publications addressing significant developments in U.S. immigration law, providing practical guidance to employers and foreign national employees on evolving regulatory requirements.

• Professional Involvement

Ms. Bialy writes on immigration developments affecting employers. Her recent articles for the National Law Review address increased scrutiny of lawful permanent residents with criminal issues, the Supreme Court’s clearing of the way to end Temporary Protected Status for Haiti and Syria, and USCIS’s reframing of adjustment of status as “extraordinary” relief.

• Experience

Ms. Bialy’s work includes PERM labor certifications and H-1B, L-1, and O-1 petitions. She analyzes eligibility, assesses compliance considerations, prepares detailed petitions, and conducts legal and factual research and documentation review for regulatory compliance.

Mandira Sethi, Counsel | Barnes & Thornburg

Mandira Sethi is counsel in Barnes & Thornburg’s Atlanta office. She guides employers through visa applications and nonimmigrant petitions and works with organizations across industries on immigration policy development, securing visas, and permanent residence matters for a range of professional categories. An immigrant from India herself, she draws on personal experience in supporting clients’ integration into and contribution to their communities.

• Education & Credentials

Ms. Sethi earned her J.D. from Atlanta’s John Marshall Law School in 2020 and her B.A. in Psychology from Emory University in 2007. She is admitted to practice in Georgia. She speaks Hindi.

• Recognition & Leadership

In law school, Ms. Sethi chaired the Moot Court Advisory Board, served as a peer mentor, and competed in the Georgia Intrastate Moot Court Competition.

• Professional Involvement

Ms. Sethi has participated in her law school’s AABS discussion panels and mentored bar exam candidates and alumni on bar preparation and essay writing. She writes regularly on immigration developments; her National Law Review articles include “Weighted Odds: FY2027’s High-Stakes H-1B Lottery” and “U.S. to Prioritize Higher Wages in New H-1B Selection Process.”

• Experience

Her practice covers permanent (PERM) labor certification applications, employment-based immigration petitions across preference categories, EB-1 Extraordinary Ability and EB-1 Outstanding Researcher/Professor cases, consular processing, and naturalization, along with I-9 compliance, audits, and investigations.

SESSION 1 – H-1B in Crisis: Navigating the $100,000 Fee, the Litigation Whiplash, and the New Lottery Rules | 2:30pm – 3:30pm

This session covers the H-1B program’s 2026 upheaval — the $100,000 fee imposed by presidential proclamation, its vacatur and pending appeal, and the weighted lottery and wage rules reshaping who gets sponsored.

BREAK | 3:30pm – 3:40pm

SESSION 2 – Beyond H-1B: Building an O-1, EB-1, and E-2 Bench for Global Talent Retention | 3:40pm – 4:40pm

This session covers O-1, EB-1, and E-2 visa strategy as durable alternatives to H-1B sponsorship, with a focus on evidentiary standards for AI and technology talent and redesigning corporate immigration policy around a diversified visa portfolio.