Bruce Buchanan
Senior Counsel
Bruce Buchanan helps employers build workforce and immigration compliance practices that stand up to government scrutiny. He conducts internal audits, reviews hiring and employment eligibility verification procedures, and addresses potential issues before they cause compliance gaps or disrupt operations.
Bruce works with employers across the country to hire and retain international talent, comply with immigration requirements and address labor relations and wage and hour issues. He advises on employment-based visas and I-9 and E-Verify compliance requirements. He also prepares employers for government inspections and investigations and helps them respond to immigration enforcement actions, including U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement audits.
As a former senior trial specialist with the National Labor Relations Board, Bruce spent more than two decades investigating and litigating workplace disputes. He understands how agencies evaluate compliance practices and approach enforcement. He uses this experience to help employers spot concerns early and make informed decisions about workforce management.
Experience
- Negotiated a 40% reduction of more than $1 million in threatened penalties for a national staffing company and secured favorable payment terms to avoid financial disruption to the business’s operations.
- Reduced I-9 penalties levied against a national manufacturer and federal contractor by more than one-third following an ICE audit, through challenges to the government's audit and litigation before the Office of the Chief Administrative Hearing Officer (OCAHO).
- Served as lead NLRB prosecutor in a nine-year labor dispute involving an automotive industry supplier, obtaining multimillion-dollar award after a 13-week trial before an NLRB administrative law judge that was upheld unanimously by the NLRB and by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit.