Appointed September 1994 · President Bill Clinton→ Attorney General Janet Reno(AG inferred from date)
31 years on the immigration bench
Appointed under a Democratic administration
Background
The Honorable Immigration Judge Eliza Klein earned a Bachelor of Arts in 1976 from Kirkland College and a Juris Doctor in 1982 from Northeastern University School of Law. She worked as an immigration attorney with the International Institute of Boston from 1984 to 1986 and as a part-time supervisory attorney with the Cambridgeport Problem Center from 1986 to 1994, while also maintaining a private practice in Boston and Cambridge. She was appointed as an immigration judge in September 1994 and is a member of the Massachusetts Bar.
Caseload & process (since 2021)
227
Completions per year
682 total
0.1%
Detained at decision
share of cases
51.7 mo
Median time to decision
from case start
10.8%
Ordered removed in absentia
person absent
4.8%
Decisions appealed to BIA
appeal rate
—
Appeals remanded or reversed
only 8 appeals — too few
Grant rates by type of relief
Share granted among merits decisions for each application type, since 2021.
Asylum
79.4%
107 decisions Moderate
Withholding / CAT
25%⚠
40 decisions Too few cases
Cancellation — 42B (non-LPR)
61.3%⚠
31 decisions Too few cases
Cancellation — 42A (LPR)
33.3%⚠
3 decisions Too few cases
Adjustment of status (245)
94.5%
55 decisions Moderate
Voluntary departure
100%⚠
11 decisions Too few cases
79.4%
of asylum claims granted on the merits Moderate
Based on 107 asylum decisions (grants + denials) since 2021.
This judge
79.4%
This court
45.7%
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 · 106 decisions since 2021
79.2%
Without a lawyer⚠unrepresented · 1 decision since 2021
100%
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.
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).