PROGRAM DETAILS
The dinner will start at 7:00 pm, followed by Thomas Barker' presentation and Q & A session. The program will conclude at 9:00 pm. The cost of the dinner is $25.00, payable at the door by check, cash or credit card.
RSVP is required for this program. Seating is limited. To register for this program or for further questions, please e-mail your confirmation to Sang Kim, Director of Public Affairs, at [email protected].
Woo Lae Oak Restaurant In Tysons Corner
The evening program will be held at Woo Lae Oak Korean restaurant in Tysons Corner—see address above. The program will start at 6:30 pm with a cash bar, set up inside the Korea Club conference room on the 1st floor of the restaurant. For more information on Woo Lae Oak, please take a few minutes to visit the restaurant’s website: http://www.woolaeoak.com.
Thomas Barker is a partner at the law firm of Foley Hoag, LLP. He is the co-chair of the firm’s health care practice group and a member of the firm’s management committee. He joined the firm in March 2009.
Prior to joining the firm, he served in a series of senior-level positions at the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) during the Administration of President George W. Bush, including serving as general counsel of CMS and counselor to the Secretary of HHS.
Mr. Barker also provides pro-bono legal services on immigration matters, and has developed a specialization in representing North Korean refugees. Over the past six years, Mr. Barker has represented a total of 30 North Korean refugees on immigration matters. Sixteen of them have become United States citizens. Six of them have become lawful permanent residents (“green card” holders) in the United States.
He is currently representing eight additional North Korean refugees who are applying for citizenship or their green cards but whose applications are pending with the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS). In addition, he is presently representing five North Korean nationals who have applied for asylum in the United States and whose claims are pending either before USCIS or the Immigration Court.
In addition to assisting North Korean refugees on immigration matters, Mr. Barker has also provided other counseling to organizations supporting North Korean escapees. For example, he has represented six such organizations in obtaining tax-exempt (501(c)(3)) status with the Internal Revenue Service. These organizations provide a range of services including North Korean refugee resettlement, education and training, support for human rights, defector escape, and planning for Korean reunification after the collapse of the Kim regime. He has also assisted individual North Korean defectors with individual needs, such as access to health care.
Mr. Barker is an adjunct professor of health care law at the George Washington University School of Public Health and Health Services and at the Suffolk University School of Law.
FOR DRIVERS
Woo Lae Oak is conveniently located in the heart of Tysons Corner. If you need assistance locating the restaurant, please call the restaurant (703-827-7300). Ample free parking is available in the restaurant’s multi-story parking garage.
FOR METRO RIDERS
Silver Line stop at Greensboro Metro Station. The restaurant is located just south of Greensboro Metro Station. Upon arriving at Greensboro Metro Station, please exit using the West Entrance Exit. For step-by-step directions, please use http://wmata.com.