SYEDA KAZIM
**** ************* ***. #*** ? Washington, DC ? 20005 ? 832-***-**** ?
*******@*****.***
ADMISSIONS Admitted to the Illinois Bar on December 18, 2008
EDUCATION
Middle East Institute, Washington, District of Columbia
Beginner Arabic Language Courses, 2011
South Texas College of Law, Houston, Texas
Juris Doctor, May 2008
Class Rank: Top 50%
Activities: Mediation Clinic, Assistant to the Law School
Dean, and Vice President of the South Asian Law Students
Association
Honors: Dean's List and CALI Excellence for the Future
Award in Legal Negotiations
St. Edward's University, Austin, Texas
Bachelor of Arts in Economics, December 2003; Majority of
coursework in International Relations
Honors: Graduated Magna Cum Laude; Awarded Dean's
Scholarship & Dean's List
EXPERIENCE
Steptoe and Johnson, Washington,
District of Columbia
Contract Attorney
04/2011-06/2011
. Perform electronic document review using Relativity.
Reviewed documents to determine responsiveness and
privilege for complex litigation matters.
Embassy of Pakistan, Washington, District of Columbia
Research Assistant to Ambassador Haqqani, Pakistan's Ambassador to
the United States 06/2010-09/2010
. Attend congressional hearings and think tank events
related to South Asia
. Research and stay current on societal trends in the
South Asian region such as economics, sociology, and
conflict to provide daily analysis
. Draft comprehensive policy and position papers, reports,
memoranda, and briefing materials
. Conduct research for Ambassador Haqqani's publications
George R. Willy, P.C., Houston, Texas
Immigration Attorney, 6/2009-04/2010
. Appeared at Master Calendar and Individual Hearings
before the Immigration Court
. Prepared briefs and motions for submission before the
Board of Immigration Appeals and before the United
States Court of Appeals for the Fifth, Second, Eleventh,
and Tenth Circuit
. Represented clients at Asylum Officer Interviews;
Adjustment of Status Interviews, Naturalization
Interviews, and other appearances before the Citizenship
and Immigration Services
. Prepared family-based petitions, asylum applications,
naturalization applications; prepared evidentiary
submissions during deportation (removal) cases
Karadag Law Firm, Houston, Texas
Immigration Attorney (Temporary), 2/2009-05/2009
. Advised corporate clients to facilitate the hiring and
transfer of employees into the U.S.
. Prepared temporary visa petitions for nonimmigrant
workers and applications for permanent residence (PERM,
I-140, and Adjustment of Status)
. Prepared legal memorandums in company with legal
research, case analysis, and interpretation of federal
immigration statutes and regulations
Asian Americans of Texas, Houston, Texas
Outreach Coordinator, 10/2008 - 1/2009
. Identified and trained volunteers in campaign related
activity targeted towards the Asian community
. Responsible for awareness of the political process in
the Asian community; Communicated with Asian community
members to inform them of their voting rights and
organized campaign material in various Asian languages
Law Offices of Kevin R. Michaels, P.C., Houston, Texas
Law Clerk, 8/2008 - 1/2009
. Researched and drafted memoranda for civil litigation
matters
. Assisted in trial discovery matters such as answering
interrogatories, requests for production, and
communicating case issues with clients
Manuel E. Solis Immigration Law Firm, Houston, Texas
Law Clerk, Summer 2007
. Researched and drafted memoranda for matters pertaining
to immigration law
. Prepared all forms and correspondence for immigrant
petitions
Lai & Associates P.C., Houston, Texas
Law Clerk, Summer 2006
. Attended settlement negotiations, depositions, and
client meetings
. Conducted research, prepared pleadings, reviewed case
files, drafted and edited legal memoranda
. Gained exposure to a number of practice areas ranging
from civil litigation, immigration, family law, and real
estate transactions
. Prepared National Interest Waiver (NIW) petitions for
employment based immigration purposes
. Preformed legal research pertaining to areas of law such
as consumer transactions, torts, real property, and
business law
LANGUAGES & SKILLS
. Fluent in Urdu and Hindi; working towards fluency in
Arabic
. Certified Mediator