Joel Stewart practices exclusively in the area of immigration law. He specialized in Romance and Slavic Linguistics before receiving a J.D. from the University of Connecticut School of Law, and is fluent in Portuguese, Spanish, French, and Russian. He is Past President of the South Florida Chapter of the American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA) and is a nationally recognized authority on employment-based immigration matters as well as a popular speaker at immigration seminars for national and local bar associations throughout the United States.

Mr. Stewart is the editor of The Perm Book, the definitive authority on the subject of PERM processing of labor certifications, and has been writing the BALCA Case Summaries since 1987. Mr. Stewart authors official AILA articles and publications such as the Visa Processing Guide for Procedures at U.S. Consulates and Embassies in Brazil and Portugal.  He maintains a Blog on PERM issues which appears weekly on ILW.com and chairs PERM workshops and telephonic conferences for ILW throughout the year. Mr. Stewart has been listed in Florida Super Lawyers and is frequently cited internationally as a leading corporate and immigration lawyer.  In addition, to founding the Immigration Committee for the Dade County Bar Association, Mr. Stewart is General Counsel of the Brazilian Consulate in Miami, and represents the Brazilian community throughout Florida, the United States and abroad.

Presentations  

• "Consulate General of Brazil-Sala Machado de Assis," Second Brazilian Forum, Speaker, October 2006
• “Immigration Law Update,” Speaker, U.S. Department of Justice – Executive Office for Immigration Review, June 2004
• “Immigration Law Update,” Speaker, U.S. Department of Justice – Executive Office for Immigration Review, June 2003
• "International Legal Symposium in Russia," Speaker, Moscow, 2003
  
• Dade County International Law Committee, CLE Program, Speaker, 2003-2004
• American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA): Faculty Member, 2003
• AILA Annual Conference, Day Coordinator, June 2001
• American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA): Faculty Member, 2000
• American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA): Faculty Member, 1999
• American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA): Faculty Member, 1995
• American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA): Faculty Member, 1994
• Florida Bar CLE Committee, 15th Annual Immigration Law Update:  Speaker, 1993
• “Recent BALCA Decisions of Note,” Speaker, 14^th Annual Immigration Law Update, The Florida Bar, CLE Committee, Feb, 1993
• American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA): Faculty Member, 1993
• “Board of Labor Certification Appeals (BALCA) Update,” Speaker, 13^th Annual Immigration Law Update: The Florida Bar - CLE Committee, Feb 1992
• American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA): Faculty Member, 1992
• “Immigration to the United States Through Labor Certification,” Speaker, 12^th Annual Immigration Law Update, Feb 1991
• “Advanced Labor Certification Issues,” Speaker, 11^th Annual Immigration Update, The Florida Bar, CLE Committee, Feb 1990
• “The Labor Certification Process – Planning and Presenting then Application,” Speaker, 10^th Annual Immigration Law Update, The Florida Bar - CLE Committee, Feb 1989
• “How to Avoid Notice of Findings,” Speaker, 9^th Annual Immigration Law Update: The Florida Bar - CLE Committee, Feb 1988
• “Labor and Certification – A Step-By-Step Approach,” Speaker, 8^th Annual Immigration Update: The Florida Bar - CLE Committee, Feb 1987

Publications

• AILA, Monthly Mailing, Contributing Editor, 1986-Present
  
• “The PERM Book II,” Editor, ILW.com, 2007
• “The PERM Book I,” Editor, ILW.com, 2005   
• “Como Entrar e Ficar Legal nos EUA,” Author, The Jornal do Valle do Rio Doce, Brazil, 2002