ABOUT VELIE LAW FIRM
Jon Velie
Founder and President
Jon Velie has practiced law for seventeen years and is internationally renowned in Immigration Law, Corporate Law and Litigation.
Immigration Law
Jon has represented Olympians, Oscar Winners, World Champions and National Champions in a wide spectrum of sports and entertainment to become one of the most noted immigration attorneys in America. In addition to helping many individuals, Jon has assisted major corporations, such as Aspen Skiing Company, Tyson Foods, Dell and Lucent’s Bell Laboratories. Jon secured the first “greencard” for a professional rugby player.
He is licensed as a sports agent and has over 30 international clients in the sports and entertainment industry competing and performing across the United States. Jon has testified in court as an expert in immigration law and has authored expert letters for immigration cases.
Jon will be speaking at the Sports Law Association annual conference on the subject of Immigration in May, 2010 and has spoken at immigration seminars for Aspen Ski Company, 2005-2009, Lucent’s Bell Laboratories and Oklahoma University. He was featured in: Lawyer’s Weekly in July 2001 “Taking the Law Firm Website to the Next Level”, International Gymnast Magazine “Immigration Men” and in Rugby Magazine“Rugby Immigration Experts.” Jon authored the article, “Immigration Issues and Solutions for the Ski Industry.” Jon launched OnlineVisas.com, was awarded the American Bar Association’s Louis M. Brown Legal Access to Justice Award and was declared an innovator in the legal industry.
Corporate Law
Jon served Corporate Counsel for Vectrix Corporation, where he assisted the growth of the company from 3 to 400 employees, acquired eleven companies and raised over $90 Million. Jon led the vertical assisting law firms in developing online practices. Jon is a board of directors member for Calleo Entertainment, a casino company based in Las Vegas and 1Dragon, Inc., and a US textile company with parent in China.
Litigation
Jon briefed three cases to the United States Supreme Court as well as winning a Washington DC Court of Appeals case labeled “the most significant civil rights case in the 21st Century”. Jon argued cases in federal, state and tribal courts in California, Texas and Oklahoma and authored “Should the United States be Fighting for Jim Crow’s Survival by its complicity in Denying Voting Rights to the Cherokee Freedmen?”; The Federal Lawyer, Feb. 2007. Jon was also nominated for the 2008 Morris Dees Award.
Jon has been featured in the New York Times, LA Times, Washington Post, Chicago Tribune, Le Monde, Newsday, Daily Journal, Harpers Magazine, London Times, and the Australian. He was the subject of the cover story “Sovereign Nation,” in California’s legal magazine, the Daily Journal in Dec. 2004 and “Spotlight on Jon Velie: Man On a Thirteen Year Mission,” in the Modern American, Spring 2005. Jon was featured on the CBS 60 Minutes II piece “A Nation Divided,” in 2000 and has been a regular guest speaker on US Immigration law on Dublin Ireland’s afternoon radio show with George Hook. Jon has spoken at US Congressional and agency panels as well as universities across the United States.
Jon received his JD from the University of Oklahoma in 1993 and BA from the University of California at Berkeley, in 1989. He was also a three time collegiate rugby All-American and National Champion at the University of California and coached rugby at The University of Oklahoma for seven years. Jon is married to Laura and has four children, Gabriella, John, Chloe and Samantha.
