Appointed November 2024 · President Joe Biden→ Attorney General Merrick Garland(AG inferred from date)
1 year on the immigration bench
Appointed under a Democratic administration
Background
The Honorable Immigration Judge Christine Olson earned a Bachelor of Arts from the University of California, Berkeley in 2000 and a Juris Doctor from the University of California, Davis School of Law in 2008. She worked as a litigation associate at Davis Polk & Wardwell and DLA Piper, an assistant city attorney in Seattle, a trial attorney in the DOJ Criminal Division's Office of International Affairs (2016-2021), and an assistant U.S. attorney in the District of Hawaii (2021-2024). She was appointed to the Chelmsford Immigration Court in November 2024.
Caseload & process (since 2021)
626
Completions per year
3,128 total
27%
Detained at decision
share of cases
21.4 mo
Median time to decision
from case start
13.6%
Ordered removed in absentia
person absent
10.9%
Decisions appealed to BIA
appeal rate
60%
Appeals remanded or reversed
20 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.
54.2%
Bond requests granted
402 bond decisions High confidence
$6,000
Median bond when set
213 bonds with amounts
2.3%
Released on own recognizance
This judge 54.2%
Court average 60.8% · median $5,000
National 41.9% · median $6,500
Grant rates by type of relief
Share granted among merits decisions for each application type, since 2021.
Asylum
17.1%
350 decisions High confidence
Withholding / CAT
3.6%
476 decisions High confidence
Cancellation — 42B (non-LPR)
13.8%⚠
29 decisions Too few cases
Cancellation — 42A (LPR)
14.3%⚠
7 decisions Too few cases
Adjustment of status (245)
58.3%⚠
24 decisions Too few cases
Voluntary departure
84.5%
129 decisions Moderate
17.1%
of asylum claims granted on the merits High confidence
Based on 350 asylum decisions (grants + denials) since 2021.
This judge
17.1%
This court
36.8%
National average
31.8%
0%100% granted
In the bottom 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 · 329 decisions since 2021
17.3%
Without a lawyer⚠unrepresented · 21 decisions since 2021
14.3%
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).