🚨 OFAC SUSPENDED FIVE IRAN AUTHORIZATIONS, AND THE WIND DOWN IS ALREADY OVER ⚖️

On August 24, 2026, Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control stayed five authorizations under the Iranian Transactions and Sanctions Regulations, 31 C.F.R. part 560. The rule is published at 91 Fed. Reg. 54,957 and is captioned “Final rule; stay of effectiveness.” 📄

What was suspended:
💸 31 C.F.R. 560.550, certain noncommercial personal remittances to or from Iran
🎓 General License G, certain academic exchanges and educational services
🏫 31 C.F.R. 560.544, certain educational activities by U.S. persons in third countries
🎤 31 C.F.R. 560.554, conference related services in the U.S. and third countries
⚽ General License F, professional and amateur sports activities and exchanges

⏰ General License BB allowed wind down transactions only through 12:01 a.m. EDT on September 8, 2026. That window is closed. After it, a specific license from OFAC is required.

📝 The effects are already visible. ETS said that following OFAC’s suspension of General License G it immediately suspended TOEFL and GRE testing operations in Iran. Duolingo lists its English test as unavailable in Iran and for users with Iranian IDs.

⚠️ Read it narrowly. Five authorizations were stayed, not every Iran related activity. Other authorizations and statutory exemptions remain, and 31 C.F.R. 560.543 on certain property in Iran was not touched. Banks and universities often apply policies stricter than the law requires, so a refusal is not proof of a prohibition.

📌 Denied or cut off? Get the reason in writing, keep every record, and call us before a deadline passes.

📞 (212) 323-7435 | ArvandLaw.com
One World Trade Center, Suite 8500, New York, NY 10007
Attorney Advertising. Not legal advice.

#IranSanctions #OFAC #ImmigrationLawyer #GeneralLicenseG #ArvandLaw

🚨 ONE JUROR WILL NOT FOLLOW THE LAW. CAN A JUDGE CUT THEM? ⚖️

Sixth day of deliberations in the Lindsay Clancy trial, roughly 35 and a half hours, and the foreperson sent Judge William Sullivan a note. 📝

🗣️ Defense attorney Kevin Reddington told the court the note said there is “one juror who refuses to listen to the law that you’ve given him or her on reasonable doubt.” He called the judge’s earlier reminder a “soft” instruction and moved to have that juror removed.

⚖️ Sullivan questioned each juror privately, reread his reasonable doubt instruction, and refused. “I don’t feel that it is proper for me to side with one side or the other of the deliberations. I don’t feel it’s appropriate for me to say I agree with one juror or the 11.”

📘 The law is on his side. In Massachusetts a deliberating juror can be discharged, after a hearing, “only upon a finding of an emergency or other compelling reason.” G. L. c. 234A, section 39.

🔒 And under Commonwealth v. Connor, discharge is allowed “only [for] reasons personal to [that] juror, having nothing whatever to do with the issues of the case.” Illness. A family emergency. Not the view a juror has formed about the evidence.

🔄 Removal is also no shortcut: an alternate would be seated and the jury would have to start deliberating from scratch, and in Commonwealth v. Tiscione the SJC vacated convictions because a juror was cut for reasons that were not purely personal.

💬 From outside the room, a principled holdout and a juror ignoring the law look identical. That is exactly why judges almost never remove one. What would you have done?

📞 (212) 323-7435 | (646) 660-2658
🌐 ArvandLaw.com
📍 One World Trade Center, Suite 8500, New York, NY 10007

Attorney Advertising. General information, not legal advice.

#LindsayClancy #JuryDeliberations #CriminalDefense #ReasonableDoubt #ArvandLaw

⚖️ THE JURY IS DEADLOCKED. WHAT HAPPENS NOW? 🚨

Six days of deliberations in the Lindsay Clancy murder trial, and twice the jury has told Judge William Sullivan it cannot reach a unanimous decision. 🔒

🧨 On Wednesday the judge read the Tuey-Rodriguez instruction, the Massachusetts version of what lawyers call the dynamite charge: keep listening to each other, do not surrender an honest conviction, and try again. It is usually the last move before a mistrial.

📝 What is actually on the verdict slip, for each child separately: not guilty by reason of insanity (in Massachusetts, lack of criminal responsibility), first degree murder, second degree murder, or manslaughter.

🧠 Clancy admits she strangled Cora, Dawson and Callan. The fight is over criminal responsibility, and the burden sits on the Commonwealth.

🚨 If the jury stays stuck, the judge can declare a mistrial. A mistrial is not an acquittal. Double jeopardy does not bar a second trial after a genuine deadlock, and a jury can return a verdict as to one child while hanging as to another.

🔀 After that, three doors for the DA: retry the case, negotiate a resolution, or drop the charges.

💬 A hung jury is not a failure of the system. Sometimes it is the system working. What would you do if you were in that room?

📞 (212) 323-7435 | (646) 660-2658
🌐 ArvandLaw.com
📍 One World Trade Center, Suite 8500, New York, NY 10007

ArvandLaw is a premier boutique law firm located in the heart of Manhattan’s Financial District—just minutes from the Immigration Courts at 26 Federal Plaza. We proudly represent clients in both immigration and personal injury matters, delivering the white‑glove service, personal attention, and results‑driven advocacy every client deserves. To schedule a consultation about your immigration or personal injury case, please contact us at 212‑323‑7435 or 646‑660‑2658.

M. Ray Arvand, Esq.
Founder, ArvandLaw

#LindsayClancy #HungJury #CriminalDefense #PostpartumPsychosis #ArvandLaw

🚨 She allegedly filmed the jury.🤦‍♂️😡

⚖️ Twelve strangers get pulled out of their lives, told to judge someone, and the only thing standing between them and the outside world is one rule: nobody touches the jury.

📍 This week that rule got tested in Plymouth, Massachusetts. A woman was arrested in the court parking lot during the Lindsay Clancy murder trial, accused of recording jurors as they left after a fourth day of deliberations. 🚫 The jurors’ identities were under seal and the judge had ordered that they not be photographed or filmed.

🔓 She pleaded not guilty, was released on personal recognizance, and is barred from the courthouse and from sharing anything she captured. ⏳ Reports put her exposure in the range of two decades.

📸 Tampering, intimidation, interference: three words for the same danger. It does not take a bribe. It does not take a threat. A camera is enough.

👉 Swipe through, then tell me: 💬 would you still want to sit on that jury?

📞 (212) 323-7435
🌐 ArvandLaw.com
📍 One World Trade Center, Suite 8500, New York, NY 10007

Thank you for following us on Instagram. ArvandLaw is a premier boutique law firm located in the heart of Manhattan’s Financial District—just minutes from the Immigration Courts at 26 Federal Plaza. We proudly represent clients in both immigration and personal injury matters, delivering the white‑glove service, personal attention, and results‑driven advocacy every client deserves. To schedule a consultation about your immigration or personal injury case, please contact us at 212‑323‑7435 or 646‑660‑2658.

M. Ray Arvand, Esq.
Founder, ArvandLaw

#JuryDuty #CriminalDefense #LindsayClancy #CourtroomRules #ArvandLaw

Thank you for following us on Instagram. ArvandLaw is a premier boutique law firm located in the heart of Manhattan’s Financial District—just minutes from the Immigration Courts at 26 Federal Plaza. We proudly represent clients in both immigration and personal injury matters, delivering the white‑glove service, personal attention, and results‑driven advocacy every client deserves. To schedule a consultation about your immigration or personal injury case, please contact us at 212‑323‑7435 or 646‑660‑2658.

M. Ray Arvand, Esq.
Founder, ArvandLaw

#ctinjurylawyer #WeAreArvandLaw #Immigration #Law Lawyer

🚨 New Form I-864, and there is no grace period.

On August 31, 2026, USCIS published the 08/24/26 edition of the Affidavit of Support and began accepting only that edition the same day. Any I-864 postmarked or filed electronically on or after August 31 must be the new version. The 10/17/24 edition will not be processed.

📄 The change that matters: the new edition contains a privacy release authorizing USCIS and the State Department to request information from consumer reporting agencies, including credit reports and scores, in connection with the sufficiency determination on the affidavit. The same language now appears on Form I-864A and Form I-864EZ, so a household member who signs is agreeing to it as well.

🧊 A practical trap. USCIS warns that if a sponsor has a credit or security freeze, it may not be able to access the information needed to assess the affidavit. Sponsors who froze their credit years ago after a data breach should check now, and respond immediately to any request to lift it. A delay there is a delay in the green card case.

✅ To be clear about what did not change: the income standard is still 125 percent of the Federal Poverty Guidelines, 100 percent for a sponsor on active duty sponsoring a spouse or child. A credit score is not the legal test. What changed is what the government may look at while deciding whether the affidavit is sufficient.

📌 Filing this month? Rebuild the packet on the current edition, have the sponsor sign fresh, and confirm 08/24/26 at the bottom of every page.

💬 Question about your affidavit of support? Drop it in the comments or call us.

📞 (212) 323-7435 | ArvandLaw.com
📍 One World Trade Center, Suite 8500, New York, NY 10007

ArvandLaw is a premier boutique law firm located in the financial district of Manhattan and just minutes from the Immigration Courts at 26 Federal Plaza in New York City. Call us today for an evaluation of your immigration matter 212-323-7435 or 646-660-2658.

#ImmigrationLaw #GreenCard #AffidavitOfSupport #AdjustmentOfStatus #USCIS

.pro-gallery-wix-wrapper {display: block !important;} .pro-gallery-wix-wrapper .gallery-item-container {opacity: 1 !important; display: block !important;}

Follow us on Instagram

@arvandlaw

ArvandLaw

Law Office of M. Ray Arvand, P.C.

Strategic immigration representation nationwide and personal injury representation across Connecticut.

IMMIGRATION LAW

PERSONAL INJURY

CONTACT

Phone: 212-323-7435

Email: ray@arvandlaw.com

One World Trade Center,

Suite 8500

New York, NY 10007

​

Follow us on Instagram

ArvandLaw