• Department of Justice Honors Program - 1995
• Depart of Homeland Security Secretary's Award for Exemplary Service - 2005
• Immigration and Naturalization Service's (INS) Distinguished Service Award - 2003

Victor X. Cerda is an immigration Partner in the Washington, D.C. Region office of Jackson Lewis LLP, and a nationally recognized leader in representing the employer community on complex immigration enforcement issues. He focuses his practice exclusively on advising, counseling, and litigating on behalf of corporations, individuals, and overseas clients on immigration and visa processes. His areas of focus include employer worksite enforcement, I-9 compliance audits, immigrant and non-immigrant visas, entertainment visas, and immigration court removal proceedings.

Mr. Cerda has represented and counseled foreign governments, current and former Heads of State, Fortune 500 companies, executives and business owners, members of the motion picture, recording, and professional sports industry, and individuals facing complex immigration matters. Mr. Cerda has successfully counseled companies in navigating through ICE I-9 audits and worksite investigations, defended individuals in removal proceedings, and addressed security issues in the visa process.

In addition, Mr. Cerda frequently provides expert commentary on immigration and homeland security issues for national media, including FOX, CNN, The New York Times, and The Washington Post.

In 1995, Mr. Cerda began his legal career with the U.S. Department of Justice representing the United States in hundreds of immigration bond and removal hearings.

On September 11, 2001, Mr. Cerda was appointed Counsel and Acting Chief of Staff for the legacy-INS. He had primary responsibility for many of the Nation’s post-9/11 immigration efforts and legal reforms.

In March 2003, Mr. Cerda became the Counsel to the Assistant Secretary and Acting Chief of Staff for the newly created Department of Homeland Security (DHS), U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). Mr. Cerda provided legal, policy, and operational oversight over immigration investigations, detention and removals, worksite enforcement, and high-profile deportation cases, including national security cases. He represented ICE in White House and interagency decision-making, and testified before Congress on immigration enforcement issues on numerous occasions.

In 2004, he became the Acting General Counsel for ICE, managing 600 attorneys nationwide and formulating ICE legal positions on removal cases, worksite enforcement, and national immigration issues. He concluded his government career as the Acting Director of Detention and Removal Operations (DRO) where he managed DHS’ detention and removal operations and managed more than over 4,000 employees, including more than 2,500 sworn federal law enforcement officers. As DRO Director, he reorganized DRO’s Headquarters and Field Offices, expanded ICE’s fugitive operations mission, deported a then-record number of individuals, implemented a national Alternatives to Detention Program, and began implementing the Criminal Alien Program.