Christopher Wendt
by Jane Pribek
Submitted photo |
Born: Sept. 29, 1970; Fairmont, Minn.
Education: University of Michigan Law School, J.D., 1998; Beloit College, B.A., 1993
Employment: Mayo Clinic, immigration counsel, 2003-present; Butzel Long, associate, 1998-2003
Professional Associations: American Immigration Lawyers Association, Minnesota State Bar Association, State Bar of Michigan
Community Activities: Legal Assistance of Olmsted County, Southern Minnesota Regional Legal Services
Hobbies/Interests: Family activities, Russian films, tennis Family: Wife, Nina; three daughters
Mayo Clinic
Education: University of Michigan Law School, J.D., 1998; Beloit College, B.A., 1993
Employment: Mayo Clinic, immigration counsel, 2003-present; Butzel Long, associate, 1998-2003
Professional Associations: American Immigration Lawyers Association, Minnesota State Bar Association, State Bar of Michigan
Community Activities: Legal Assistance of Olmsted County, Southern Minnesota Regional Legal Services
Hobbies/Interests: Family activities, Russian films, tennis Family: Wife, Nina; three daughters
Attorney Christopher Wendt has a world map hanging on his wall. Every time he and his colleague in the international personnel office of the Mayo Clinic help employees obtain U.S. citizenship, he puts a small sticker on their country of origin.
It’s gratifying because a common theme runs through almost every case: “These are interesting people, oftentimes with compelling stories, many of whom are the salt of the earth, and I’m certain they will make substantial contributions to their communities as citizens,” Wendt says.
“For almost every one of them, becoming a citizen is one of the most important things in their lives, and I’m just in awe of their achievements,” he continues. “Some of them are innovating and making advancements that literally will make a difference to millions of Americans.”
Wendt knows from personal experience how challenging the immigration process can be. He met and married his wife, Nina, in Russia, shortly after graduating from college.
“Law school had always been an option in the back of my mind, but it wasn’t really cemented in my consciousness until I went over to Russia. I never really understood the importance of a functioning, fair legal system until then,” he says. “It hit me how much we depend, in every little transaction, on this tremendous backstop that we all take for granted.”
After graduating from the University of Michigan Law School and practicing in a large Detroit firm for five years, Wendt decided it was time to come home to Minnesota.
Wendt also serves as Mayo’s pro bono coordinator, and donates time as a volunteer attorney with Southern Minnesota Regional Legal Services on citizenship and immigration matters.
With the American Immigration Lawyers Association, he advocates immigration reform. One of the changes he and others would like to see is an easier process for foreign nurses to obtain residency, in light of this country’s well-documented nursing shortage.
Closer to home, Wendt has organized Naturalization Day in Rochester for the past two years. The event brings together volunteer immigration attorneys to help green-card holders with their naturalization paperwork. Approximately 80 people attended the event last month, and about 50 of them left with their naturalization packages ready for filing.
Wendt hypothesizes that he’s one of a very small number of in-house immigration attorneys. But that’s likely to change.
“There’s been an upward trend in bringing immigration counsel in-house,” he explains. “It’s still fairly rare now, but it’s becoming more common as the law becomes more complex, and perhaps more importantly, as the penalties for employers, for even innocent mistakes, become harsher. Companies are no longer able to let immigration be a secondary concern."
