- Report: #1175167
Complaint Review: Sabine Thoren - Cleveland Ohio
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Author Not Confirmed
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Sabine Thoren
3150 Chester Avenue Cleveland, 44114 Ohio, USA
Phone:
(216) 566-9908
Web:
http://www.imwong.com/
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Sabine Thoren Margaret Wong and Associates - most expensive & fabricated Lawyer - bad choice Cleveland Ohio
I hired Margaret Wong & Associates last Fall (2013) after I received a denial for my passport. After meeting with her she assured me that she can get my paperwork settled. Her fee was $5000.00 Flat fee - then $200.00 filing fees - I also paid for my finger prints, 2 Biometrics, 1 travel request application and 1 green card renewel - I paid everything upfront
I received a list from Margaret in regards to all the paperwork i needed to bring her, it included my voting record, my marriage & divorce papers. My adoption papers the denial I received about my passport. I took a day off from work and located all the paperwork she requested. I received 2 denial papers for my green card - not because of myself but because her Associates did not complete the paperwork. Last month - almost 1 year later - I finally got my green card. I then met with Margaret again to plan our stradegy moving forward. So far so good - its taking a long time but its moving. When I left her office I received another list of paperwork that i needed to locate, write my life story - get the original papers from where I signed up to vote.
OK, I'm in the middle of gathering the information, studying for my citizenship when I had a question for her - I researched and found on the internet that you need certain ID paperwork when applying for a Social Security Card - I was adopted by an american family and at 15 years of age I knew nothing about a passport, SSI card and so forth. But the internet said that you cannot get a SSI card without proving you are a citizen. Well I have and always had a legal SS card. I wanted her (Margaret) to check what my adopted father used to verify my citizenship in order to issue me a SSI card. Well she wrote back that back in the 1970's anybody could walk in and get a SSI card - it would prove nothing! Oh and by the way - getting your US Citizenship will be $10,000.00 - Oh My Gosh
Well - both of my adopted parents are now dead and I have no paperwork from the past - they kept everything away from me and there is no way I can track anything down. I came to American on Halloween 1970 - I remember having a Green card and Passport back then but when I left the adopted parents house in 1973 after being abused, all I was able to leave with was the clothes on my back! I had no idea I had a problem - I've worked since 1973, paid taxes to both State & Federal and I have received money back - so how is it - that I'm needing to prove my status - if the Government or USCIS wanted to locate me, they could - at any time, in the 44 years - some of my friends that know my story are telling me that I'm getting ripped off - big time. I'm 60 yrs old now and hope to retire in a few years but Margaret Wong has put the fear of God in me that if I dont get this all straightened out I will not see a penny of my SS money when I retire. Also that my oldest daughter, whos father I was not married to but she is married to an american - that she is not a citizen and wouldnt get a passport until I'm approved. I'm very confused - I'm not legal smart. I know I cannot afford the $10,000.00 fee. I took a loan out to pay the initial $5200.00 and still paying it back. I have living expenses, home, car, travel back n forth to work. I live paycheck to paycheck and pray daily for no emercwencies to come up.
I'm at my wits end - am I being used by this Lawyer and her Gang? How can I afford to copntinue or even change lawyers - Margaret Wong and her Associates have me over a barrel - I would love to hear suggestions from people that either know about the law or have been in similar circumstances.
Thank you ahead of time
1 Updates & Rebuttals
Margaret
Cleveland,Ohio,
USA
Thank You from Margaret Wong in Cleveland, New York, LA, Chicago, Atlanta, Nashville and Columbus
#2REBUTTAL Owner of company
Thu, August 13, 2015
Ms. Thoren, Thank you so much for this report. It's really great to see my clients talk about their immigration experience. I had to figure out my own immigration myself, and that's why I became an immigration attorney -- I love helping foreign borns, and I love hearing their stories, even the difficult and painful stories. That's why I wrote my book, "The Immigrant's Way." My team of 10 attorneys and I handle probably the most difficult cases across the country with clients from all over the world. We win most of them. Read the success stories on our website. We try to record as many as possible.
I'm so pleased we were able to help you restore your Green Card. As you state here, yours is not an easy case. While I can't discuss your particulars here, it's so common for applications to be returned for "RFE" - Request for Evidence. We tell the government the story, and they say, "Oh, you say this, but you don't include the evidence for this statement." That's not a bad thing. The process is perfectly normal, but sometimes takes a long time to gather every detail to the satisfaction of the government.
Your Green Card replacement process took almost exactly nine months. In the immigration field, that's the blink of an eye. Sure, some cases are much shorter, but the cases that take a decade...those clients are truly raked through the coals of freedom. When they win, it's such a relief. The time is not the attorney's fault. Not the client's fault. And usually not the government's fault. It's the complexity of the case, and the neverending back and forth.
Life is hard, and that really is no joke. Every one of my clients is hard working, to put food on the table, etc. I can't tell you what's a good value in life, but I can tell you US citizenship is like the golden ticket. Sort of. You still have to follow all the rules. And nothing is free. And believe me, it doesn't get any easier. You don't have to go for the golden ticket if you don't want to -- but we're here if you need us. Or another attorney -- just make sure s/he has a global reputation for getting the job done.
And just remember, through all the effort and heartache, you now have your Green Card. Congratulations!
