Robert P. Gaffney

Robert Gaffney received his J.D. degree from University of California, Hastings College of the Law in 1980. Mr. Gaffney is an attorney licensed to practice in the State of California and is certified by the California State Bar Association as a Specialist in Immigration and Nationality Law. Through his law firm in San Francisco, Mr. Gaffney has 30 years of experience counseling a wide range of corporate and individual clients in areas of employment-related, investment, and family-based visa and immigration matters.

Mr. Gaffney is rated “AV,” the highest such rating for skill and integrity available to individual lawyers from Martindale-Hubbell, generally recognized within the U.S. legal profession as the most complete and trusted source for identifying qualified legal counsel. Mr. Gaffney is honored to have been selected through peer review for the list of Super Lawyers of Northern California, awarded to only 5% of practicing attorneys in the area.

Mr. Gaffney, who is fluent in Mandarin Chinese, received his B.A. degree in Chinese Studies with highest honors from the University of California in 1973. He attended the University of Michigan, Center for Chinese Studies as a National Defense Foreign Language Fellow. He is a long-time member of the American Immigration Lawyers Association, a member of the immigration law panel of the San Francisco Bar Association Lawyer Referral Service and a regular speaker to professional and business groups on immigration law topics. 

Mr. Gaffney has developed significant expertise and a strong practice focus representing alien entrepreneurs under the EB-5 visa program. He publications include “Country-Specific Issues and Challenges in Representing EB-5 Petitioners from the People’s Republic of China” published in Immigration Options for Investors & Entrepreneurs (2nd Ed.), AILA 2010, and “Issues and Approaches to the Preparation of I-526 Petitions for Minor Petitioners” published in Immigration Options for Investors & Entrepreneurs (4th Ed.), AILA, 2019.