H-1B lottery rules challenged

A Federal District Court in Oregon has denied the Government's request to dismiss a lawsuit brought by employers and several foreign national professionals challenging the random selection process (also referred to as the H-1B "lottery") used by USCIS to select H-1B petitions for adjudication. The plaintiffs allege that the random selection process is unlawful because it violates the express command of Immigration and Nationality Act ("INA)§214(g) which provides that foreign national professionals "shall be issued visas...in the order in which petitions are filed..."  If the plaintiffs are successful, multi-year waiting lists for H-1B visas may develop, much like those for immigrant visas for the preference categories. The case is Tenrec, Inc. v. United States Citizenship & Immigrations Servs., 2016 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 129638 * (D. Or. Sept. 22, 2016).  A copy of this most recent decision can be viewed here and a full copy of the initial complaint can be viewed here.