The Honorable Immigration Judge Dianna Michelle Martinez Soler
New York — Broadway, NY Immigration Court
Appointed November 2023 · President Joe Biden→ Attorney General Merrick Garland
2 years on the immigration bench
Appointed under a Democratic administration
Background
The Honorable Immigration Judge Dianna Michelle Martinez Soler earned a Bachelor of Arts in 2011 from Boston College and a Juris Doctor in 2014 from the Boston University School of Law. From 2017 to 2023, she worked at Central American Legal Assistance (CALA) in Brooklyn, New York, serving as legal director in 2023, supervising staff attorney from 2020 to 2023, and Immigrant Justice Corps Fellow and staff attorney from 2017 to 2020. From 2015 to 2017, she served as a judicial law clerk and then attorney advisor at the New York - Federal Plaza Immigration Court through the Attorney General's Honors Program. From 2014 to 2015, she was a staff attorney with the Boston University School of Law's Immigrants' Rights Clinic. Judge Martinez Soler is a member of the New York State Bar.
Caseload & process (since 2021)
515
Completions per year
3,088 total
1%
Detained at decision
share of cases
12.1 mo
Median time to decision
from case start
26.5%
Ordered removed in absentia
person absent
4.3%
Decisions appealed to BIA
appeal rate
—
Appeals remanded or reversed
only 18 appeals — too few
Grant rates by type of relief
Share granted among merits decisions for each application type, since 2021.
Asylum
60.2%
397 decisions High confidence
Withholding / CAT
22.6%
297 decisions High confidence
Voluntary departure
100%⚠
21 decisions Too few cases
60.2%
of asylum claims granted on the merits High confidence
Based on 397 asylum decisions (grants + denials) since 2021.
This judge
60.2%
This court
33.3%
National average
31.8%
0%100% granted
In the top 12% 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 · 377 decisions since 2021
60.7%
Without a lawyer⚠unrepresented · 20 decisions since 2021
50%
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).