Loren Locke shares seven expert tips for preparing clients for consular visa interviews in Law360.
From the Article
"Typically, you're standing at a counter, talking to someone through a big thick piece of glass."
"A good lawyer does not tell a client to lie."
"Listen carefully to the question, give a complete answer and then stand there in silence."
"You don't want to be a robot who's reciting passages you've memorized from your support letter."
Locke Immigration Law's Take
The 2015 Law360 piece is the strongest candidate in this batch for substantive expansion because the topic — preparing clients for consular visa interviews — is genuinely evergreen. The four Loren quotes captured in the original article remain practical guidance any practitioner would give in 2026: "you're standing at a counter, talking to someone through a big thick piece of glass" (the physical-context reset most clients need); "a good lawyer does not tell a client to lie" (the ethical floor that does most of the work in this area); "listen carefully to the question, give a complete answer and then stand there in silence" (the discipline that separates well-prepared applicants from over-coached ones); and "you don't want to be a robot who's reciting passages you've memorized from your support letter" (the failure mode of over-preparation).
What 2015 demonstrated about consular interview preparation, and what's stayed true a decade later, is that the standard failure modes haven't changed. Applicants still over-rehearse and produce robotic answers that read as coached. Applicants still answer questions they weren't asked, surfacing facts the officer would have been satisfied not to learn. Applicants still treat the interview as a defense rather than a conversation, which produces the body language officers are trained to read as evasive. The fixes in 2015 are the same fixes in 2026.
For clients facing consular interviews in 2026 — especially under the post-2025 vetting regime where social-media history, document trails, and case-specific factual records all sit on the officer's screen — Loren's 2015 framework still anchors the firm's preparation work. Practice answering the exact question asked, then stop. Don't volunteer content that wasn't requested. Acknowledge gaps directly when they exist rather than working around them. Bring documentation in the order the officer is likely to want it. The 2015 advice is closer to a permanent operating manual than dated guidance.
Key Takeaways
- The 2015 Law360 interview-prep framework is genuinely evergreen — the standard applicant failure modes (over-rehearsal, answering unasked questions, defensive body language) haven't changed in a decade.
- Loren's four core disciplines: reset clients on the physical context (glass counter, not a courtroom); the ethical floor (a good lawyer never tells a client to lie); listen-answer-stop discipline; and avoid robotic recitation.
- Under the post-2025 vetting regime — social media history, document trails, case-specific factual records on the officer's screen — the 2015 framework still anchors preparation work.
- Practical disciplines: answer the exact question asked, then stop; don't volunteer unsolicited content; acknowledge gaps directly when they exist; organize documentation in the order the officer will want it.
- The 2015 advice is closer to a permanent operating manual than dated guidance.