The Honorable Immigration Judge Arlene E Dorfman

Van Nuys, CA Immigration Court
Appointed July 2011 · President Barack Obama Attorney General Eric H. Holder Jr.
15 years on the immigration bench
Appointed under a Democratic administration

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Caseload & process (since 2021)
1,748
Completions per year
10,487 total
0.6%
Detained at decision
share of cases
24.3 mo
Median time to decision
from case start
27%
Ordered removed in absentia
person absent
5.2%
Decisions appealed to BIA
appeal rate
5.7%
Appeals remanded or reversed
53 appeals decided

Bond decisions

Custody redetermination (bond) rulings since 2021. "Granted" means the judge lowered the bond, ordered release on recognizance, or otherwise granted the request.
0%
Bond requests granted
2 bond decisions Too few cases
Median bond when set
Released on own recognizance
This judge 0%
Court average 50% · median $7,500
National 41.9% · median $6,500

Grant rates by type of relief

Share granted among merits decisions for each application type, since 2021.
Asylum
35.7% 944 decisions High confidence
Withholding / CAT
4.9% 989 decisions High confidence
Cancellation — 42B (non-LPR)
83.9% 279 decisions High confidence
Cancellation — 42A (LPR)
75.7% 37 decisions Too few cases
Adjustment of status (245)
96.6% 89 decisions Moderate
Voluntary departure
96% 150 decisions Moderate
35.7%
of asylum claims granted on the merits High confidence
Based on 944 asylum decisions (grants + denials) since 2021.
This judge
35.7%
This court
32.2%
National average
31.8%
0%100% granted
In the top 35% of the 825 judges nationally with enough cases to compare.

Does a lawyer matter here?

Asylum grant rate by whether the person had legal representation.
With a lawyerrepresented · 896 decisions since 2021
35.9%
Without a lawyerunrepresented · 48 decisions since 2021
31.2%

Asylum grant rate over time

Each point is that calendar year's grant rate, back to 2015 where the judge was deciding cases — the longer career view. Dashed grey line = current national average (31.8%). Headline rates above use 2021 – today.
0% 25% 50% 75% 100%2015: 26.1% of 119 decisions26.1%20152016: 20% of 60 decisions20%20162017: 50% of 68 decisions50%20172018: 49.4% of 77 decisions49.4%20182019: 28.9% of 121 decisions28.9%20192020: 48.6% of 74 decisions48.6%20202021: 46.7% of 60 decisions46.7%20212022: 81.6% of 136 decisions81.6%20222023: 67% of 97 decisions67%20232024: 72.5% of 109 decisions72.5%20242025: 21.2% of 231 decisions21.2%20252026 (partial year): 1.6% of 311 decisions1.6%2026*
* 2026 is a partial year (data through 06/01/2026) and is incomplete.

Courts where this judge has decided cases

Hearing locations for cases this judge completed since 2021, by number of decisions. Many judges hear cases from more than one court (detained facilities, video dockets, or reassignments).
Van Nuys, CA · home court
9,934 (95%)
243 (2.3%)
107 (1.0%)
42 (0.40%)
21 (0.20%)