The Honorable Immigration Judge Douglas Donaldson Nelson
West Valley, UT Immigration Court
Appointed August 2023 · President Joe Biden→ Attorney General Merrick Garland(AG inferred from date)
3 years on the immigration bench
Appointed under a Democratic administration
Background
The Honorable Immigration Judge Douglas Donaldson Nelson earned a Bachelor of Arts (1991) from Brigham Young University and a Juris Doctor (1994) from the University of San Diego School of Law. Before his appointment, he worked for decades as an immigration attorney in private practice (1995-2023). He also served as a judicial law clerk at the San Diego Immigration Court and chaired the Immigration Section of the San Diego County Bar.
Caseload & process (since 2021)
625
Completions per year
3,752 total
5.9%
Detained at decision
share of cases
16.7 mo
Median time to decision
from case start
24.9%
Ordered removed in absentia
person absent
7.7%
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
47.4%
584 decisions High confidence
Withholding / CAT
4.6%
603 decisions High confidence
Cancellation — 42B (non-LPR)
100%⚠
2 decisions Too few cases
Adjustment of status (245)
100%⚠
1 decision Too few cases
Voluntary departure
80.6%⚠
31 decisions Too few cases
47.4%
of asylum claims granted on the merits High confidence
Based on 584 asylum decisions (grants + denials) since 2021.
This judge
47.4%
This court
60.2%
National average
31.8%
0%100% granted
In the top 22% 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 · 553 decisions since 2021
49.5%
Without a lawyer⚠unrepresented · 31 decisions since 2021
9.7%
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).