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.
Driftwood is an unincorporated community in northern Hays County, Texas, United States. It lies along FM 967 north of the city of San Marcos, the county seat of Hays County. Its elevation is 1,043 feet (318 m). Although Driftwood is unincorporated, it has a post office, with the ZIP code of 78619; the ZCTA for ZIP Code 78619 had a population of 1,585 at the 2000 census, which is far larger than the population of the center of the community itself. Although the earliest settlers arrived in the area now known as Driftwood around 1850, the community was really established in the 1880s. A post office was among the results of the community's significant growth in that decade. Driftwood shrank almost to a ghost town by the early twentieth century; although it grew somewhat by the middle of the century, it returned to its almost-deserted state by the 1970s. Driftwood is also home to The Salt Lick, a relatively well-known barbecue restaurant.