Appointed May 2024 · President Joe Biden→ Attorney General Merrick Garland
2 years on the immigration bench
Appointed under a Democratic administration
Background
The Honorable Immigration Judge Cait Irwin earned a Bachelor of Arts in 2009 from Texas State University and a Juris Doctor in 2014 from Oklahoma City University School of Law. From 2014 to 2016 she served as an assistant district criminal attorney in Oklahoma County, Oklahoma, and from 2016 to 2022 in Bexar County, Texas. From 2022 to 2024, she served as an assistant chief counsel with the Office of the Principal Legal Advisor, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Department of Homeland Security, in San Antonio. She is a member of the State Bar of Texas and was appointed as an immigration judge in May 2024.
Caseload & process (since 2021)
1,599
Completions per year
9,596 total
6.8%
Detained at decision
share of cases
16.3 mo
Median time to decision
from case start
40.6%
Ordered removed in absentia
person absent
1.4%
Decisions appealed to BIA
appeal rate
—
Appeals remanded or reversed
only 10 appeals — too few
Grant rates by type of relief
Share granted among merits decisions for each application type, since 2021.
Asylum
24.6%
240 decisions High confidence
Withholding / CAT
9.3%
364 decisions High confidence
Cancellation — 42B (non-LPR)
0%⚠
21 decisions Too few cases
Cancellation — 42A (LPR)
100%⚠
3 decisions Too few cases
Adjustment of status (245)
87.5%⚠
16 decisions Too few cases
Voluntary departure
99.1%
114 decisions Moderate
24.6%
of asylum claims granted on the merits High confidence
Based on 240 asylum decisions (grants + denials) since 2021.
This judge
24.6%
This court
14.1%
National average
31.8%
0%100% granted
In the bottom 48% 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 · 191 decisions since 2021
25.1%
Without a lawyer⚠unrepresented · 49 decisions since 2021
22.4%
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).