Appointed February 2017 · President Barack Obama→ Attorney General Loretta E. Lynch
9 years on the immigration bench
Appointed under a Democratic administration
Background
The Honorable Immigration Judge Arwen A Swink earned a Bachelor of Arts in 2002 from California State University San Marcos and a Juris Doctor in 2006 from the University of California Hastings College of the Law. From 2006 to 2010 she worked as an associate attorney, and beginning in 2010 she served as a staff attorney for the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. She is a member of the State Bar of California.
Caseload & process (since 2021)
786
Completions per year
4,713 total
1.7%
Detained at decision
share of cases
44.7 mo
Median time to decision
from case start
11.4%
Ordered removed in absentia
person absent
3%
Decisions appealed to BIA
appeal rate
26.1%
Appeals remanded or reversed
23 appeals decided
Grant rates by type of relief
Share granted among merits decisions for each application type, since 2021.
Asylum
79.6%
852 decisions High confidence
Withholding / CAT
7.3%
329 decisions High confidence
Cancellation — 42B (non-LPR)
95.3%
171 decisions Moderate
Cancellation — 42A (LPR)
100%⚠
5 decisions Too few cases
Adjustment of status (245)
100%⚠
48 decisions Too few cases
Voluntary departure
100%⚠
26 decisions Too few cases
79.6%
of asylum claims granted on the merits High confidence
Based on 852 asylum decisions (grants + denials) since 2021.
This judge
79.6%
This court
68.2%
National average
31.8%
0%100% granted
In the top 5% 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 · 829 decisions since 2021
80.5%
Without a lawyer⚠unrepresented · 23 decisions since 2021
47.8%
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.
* 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).