DOJ Removes Quotas on Immigration Judges

Last week, the US Department of Justice (DOJ) removed the case quotas imposed on immigration judges in 2018 by the Trump administration. The quotas required judges to adjudicate a minimum of 700 cases a year in order to receive a satisfactory grade. Immigration judges ultimately make the difficult decision on whether an immigrant who has been placed in deportation proceedings can remain in the United States or will be removed. The Trump administration argued that the quotas were put in place for expediency and to address the backlog of immigration court cases. This quota was highly contested, especially by immigration judges who believed the quotas undermined the integrity of their position and due process for immigrant defendants. The 700-cases a year requirement also reportedly made immigration judgeship positions more stressful and difficult, and dozens of judges left their positions for that reason. The backlog of cases facing the immigration court system has now ballooned to over 1.5 million. As the Biden Administration continues to distance itself from Trump-era immigration policy, it will need to come up with its own solutions for the immense backlog of cases and lengthy processing times.