Immigration law determines whether a person is an alien, the rights, duties, and obligations associated with being an alien in the United States, and how aliens gain residence or citizenship within the United States. It also provides the means by which certain aliens can become legally naturalized citizens with full rights of citizenship. Immigration law serves as a gatekeeper for the border of the nation, determining who may enter, how long they may stay, and when they must leave. Immigration lawyers represent persons seeking temporary and permanent residency (green cards) status in the U.S., those interested in obtaining U.S. citizenship through a process called naturalization, and clients facing deportation and removal. Immigration attorneys may also represent businesses seeking to secure temporary visa status for foreign employees.
Beckwourth is a census-designated place (CDP) in Plumas County, California, United States. The population was 342 at the 2000 census. According to the USGS National Geographic Names Database, a variant spelling was Beckwith and its name comes from an early explorer who had changed his name from Beckwith to Beckwourth: Named for James P. Beckwourth (d.1867), adventurer, trapper, and trail blazer who discovered Beckwourth Pass in 1851. Beckwourth built the first house in the Sierra Valley where he operated an inn and trading post. During the 1850's, Beckwourth Pass was the portal of an immigrant route into California through Lassen, Plumas, Butte and Yuba counties known as the Beckwourth Trail.