In the midst of a judicial crisis due to the record backlog of immigration cases, the U.S. government recently fired 17 immigration judges, a move that has generated alarm among unions, migrant advocates and human rights lawyers. According to media outlets such as NPR and the AP, the dismissals were carried out without explaining specific reasons, despite the fact that Congress approved specific resources to hire more judicial personnel.
The Department of Justice(DOJ), which oversees immigration courts, notified fifteen judges by e-mail last Friday that they would be leaving their positions as of July 22. Two other judges – one in Chicago and one in Houston – were also notified days later. The departures affect courts in California, New York, Texas, Massachusetts, Ohio and Illinois. The dismissed judges were hired during Joe Biden’s administration as part of a strategy to address the growing backlog of court cases, which according to the latest TRAC (Syracuse University) report, has reached 3,462,367 active dockets, the highest number since records have been kept.
Congress approves budget
In March 2025, the U.S. Congress approved a historic budget appropriation of more than $3 billion for DOJ.
With at least $3.3 billion directed specifically to the immigration system.
Part of these funds sought to hire up to 800 new judges, given the saturation of cases and delays that can exceed 1,200 days on average for a hearing.
Despite this, the federal government has fired or pressured to retire more than 65 judges since February of this year.
Generating a reduction that, according to the IFPTE union (representing judges), could have devastating effects on the efficiency of the system.
How does this affect immigrants?
Most of the people affected by immigration court delays are Latinos.
Especially Central Americans and Mexicans facing asylum, deportation or immigration adjustment processes.
As the number of available judges is reduced, the processes are prolonged for years, which implies more legal expenses, more family uncertainty and greater psychological anxiety.
Immigrants with open cases may be caught in legal limbo, without renewed work permits or at risk of expedited deportation.
Even if they have valid legal grounds to remain in the country.
In addition, there are fears that the dismissals are an attempt to ideologically restructure the courts.
Favoring decisions more closely aligned with restrictive immigration policies.
Reactions from the judiciary
The International Federation of Professional and Technical Engineers (IFPTE) has publicly denounced the dismissals as an attempt by the Executive to “interfere with judicial independence”.
They have demanded that Congress and the federal courts oversee DOJ decisions and protect the integrity of the system.
The judges who were fired were appointed during the Joe Biden administration
QuéOnnda.com
Organizations such as AILA, CHIRLA and the National Immigration Justice Center have called the dismissals “a dangerous setback that puts access to justice for millions at stake.”
For more information, visit QuéOnnda.com.
