In sync with the times, Mayer Brown just bulked up its global mobility practice and held a discussion on immigration. (The only thing timelier would be opening a practice group focused on Tuesday afternoons.)

We snapped global mobility head Liz Stern with firm managing partner Ken Geller at 1999 K St. Liz, formerly Baker & McKenzie DC managing partner, led a discussion on visa trends in the US, with former DHS immigration ombudsman and Walt Disney World visa specialist Prakash Khatri and fellow transplant and former INS GC Paul Virtue. When it comes to the much-debated immigration reform, Paul says, we have one thing going for us: 2014. Most meaningful legislation in the last 50 years has been passed in an even-numbered year.

Here's Paul Virtue, right, with Mayer Brown government and global trade group head Duane Layton. Paul says he's been seeing more protectionism from many countries.

Mayer Brown employment & benefits partner Grace Shie and Stephen Pattison reminisced about their ex-pat days. Grace recently returned to the US after five years in Hong Kong, and Stephen spent 28 years in the Foreign Service. Another former ex-pat just joined the employment & benefits group last month: Paul Justas Sarauskas, who was in Milan for 10 years. We spotted him at the event, but, apparently not wanting to be in one place for too long, he's since transplanted to the Chicago office.