Bilzin Sumberg Onboards Immigration Practice with Addition of Jacob L. Ratzan, Jack Finkelman, and Renata Keller Duran
Miami, FL — Bilzin Sumberg, one of Florida’s preeminent business law firms, is expanding its legal counsel offerings with the addition of Partner and Head of Immigration Jacob L. Ratzan, Of Counsel Jack Finkelman, and Of Counsel Renata Keller Dias Duran. The three bring complementary experience in U.S. immigration law, cross border investment and complex business matters, strengthening Bilzin Sumberg’s ability to advise domestic and international businesses, investors, entrepreneurs, executives, and high-net-worth individuals and families on the legal considerations involved in establishing and maintaining their personal and business interests in the United States.
The expansion reflects the growing intersection of immigration, international investment, business formation, and private wealth planning. By integrating immigration counsel with the firm’s nationally and internationally recognized tax, trusts and estates, corporate, and real estate capabilities, Bilzin Sumberg offers clients a coordinated approach to establishing, expanding, and maintaining their business and personal interests in the United States.
"Jacob, Jack, and Renata bring precisely the kind of complementary capabilities and strong client relationships that we are focused on adding as Bilzin Sumberg continues to grow,” said Bilzin Sumberg CEO and Managing Partner Albert E. Dotson, Jr. “Immigration considerations are increasingly central to the decisions international businesses, investors, and families make about where to operate, invest, and establish their futures. Their arrival enhances our ability to address these needs alongside sophisticated tax planning, wealth preservation, and business structuring, providing clients with comprehensive counsel across multiple disciplines."
Ratzan, a Florida Bar Board Certified Specialist in Immigration and Nationality Law, brings extensive experience advising individuals, families, investors, and businesses on employment-based and investment-based immigration, family-sponsored petitions, permanent residency, citizenship and naturalization, and employer immigration compliance. His practice also includes federal immigration litigation, including mandamus and Administrative Procedure Act actions involving delayed immigration applications and challenges to agency decisions. He represents employers across a range of industries, including technology and healthcare, as well as internationally recognized athletes, artists, musicians, physicians, executives, and other professionals. His experience encompasses extraordinary ability petitions, multinational executive and manager transfers, employment-based immigrant petitions, national interest waivers, temporary work visas, and more.
Finkelman focuses on the intersection of U.S. immigration law, international investment, and business development. He advises foreign investors and entrepreneurs on coordinating the negotiation, structuring, and documentation of U.S. investments with immigration planning, including E-2 investor visas, EB-5 immigrant investor matters, permanent residency, and the establishment and operation of U.S. businesses. His experience provides clients with practical guidance on navigating immigration requirements while pursuing their commercial and investment objectives.
Keller Dias Duran brings an international legal background and multidisciplinary experience spanning immigration, corporate, real estate, tax, and civil litigation matters. Originally from Brazil, she began her legal career advising judges at the Appellate Court in the state of Bahia before entering private practice. Her cross-border experience and understanding of both Brazilian and U.S. legal environments enhance the team’s ability to serve international clients navigating immigration and related business and personal considerations. Her practice encompasses employment-based and family-based immigration matters, including nonimmigrant visa petitions and applications, consular processing, permanent residency, and naturalization.
The team’s arrival expands Bilzin Sumberg’s ability to advise on a broad spectrum of immigration matters, including extraordinary ability and national interest waiver petitions, multinational workforce mobility, investor and employment-based visas, permanent residency, family immigration, federal immigration litigation, and regulatory compliance. Working alongside the firm’s Tax & Private Wealth, Corporate, Real Estate, and Trial & Litigation practices, the immigration team will help clients address issues involving cross-border investment, U.S. tax exposure, business formation, family office establishment, succession planning, and the relocation of executives and family members.
“Bilzin Sumberg has built an exceptional platform for advising multinational corporations and international clients whose personal, business, and investment interests extend across borders,” said Ratzan. “For many of our clients, immigration is just one component of a much broader decision involving where to live, invest, establish businesses, and build their futures. Combining our immigration experience with the firm’s sophisticated tax, private wealth, corporate, and transactional capabilities allows us to deliver more integrated and effective solutions to clients navigating these important decisions."
The additions build on Bilzin Sumberg’s continued investment in its Tax & Private Wealth practice, including the recent arrival of Partner Mauricio D. Rivero and Associate Adriana Obeso Ortiz. Widely recognized for its sophisticated domestic and international tax and estate planning counsel, the practice holds top tier rankings in Chambers USA, Chambers High Net Worth, and Legal 500.
Ratzan earned his J.D. from the Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law and his B.A. in International Relations from Tufts University. He is admitted to practice in Florida, New York, and the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida. He is fluent in English and Spanish.
Finkelman earned his LL.B. from the University of Windsor Law School and his B.Comm. from McGill University in Montreal, Canada. He is admitted to practice in Florida and Ontario, Canada, and is fluent in English, Spanish, and French.
Keller Dias Duran earned her law degree from Faculdade Unime in Brazil and an LL.M. from Florida International University College of Law. She is admitted to practice in Missouri, is a member of the American Immigration Lawyers Association, and is fluent in English and Portuguese.
Together, the team’s international experience and expanded multilingual capabilities, including fluency in English, French, Spanish, Portuguese, and Russian, further strengthen Bilzin Sumberg’s ability to serve clients across the United States, Latin America, Europe, and other international markets.
About Bilzin Sumberg
Bilzin Sumberg is a nationally recognized law firm headquartered in Miami, Florida, advising businesses, developers, financial institutions, high-net-worth individuals and families, and public and private entities across Florida, the United States, and internationally. The firm's practice spans real estate, corporate and securities, litigation and trials, antitrust, construction, tax and private wealth, environmental law, CMBS, government relations, restructuring and finance, land use, and public-private partnerships. The firm complements its commercial practice with a deep commitment to corporate citizenship and community service, driven by its strong philanthropic and pro bono initiatives.
Bilzin Sumberg combines deep legal experience, commercial judgment, and senior-level attention to help clients navigate complex transactions, disputes, regulatory matters, and development projects. To learn more about our attorneys, practice groups, and representative experience, visit bilzin.com.
