Appointed September 2016 · President Barack Obama→ Attorney General Loretta E. Lynch
9 years on the immigration bench
Appointed under a Democratic administration
Background
The Honorable Immigration Judge George W Riggs earned a Bachelor of Applied Arts in 1985 from Florida Atlantic University, a Juris Doctor in 1990 from Nova Southeastern University, and a Master of Laws in 2002 from the U.S. Army Judge Advocate General's School. Before his appointment, he served extensively with the U.S. Marine Corps as a staff judge advocate and circuit military judge, including as a senior rule of law advisor in Iraq (2008-2009), and earlier maintained a private practice in West Palm Beach, Florida (1994-1996).
Caseload & process (since 2021)
709
Completions per year
709 total
0.8%
Detained at decision
share of cases
37.8 mo
Median time to decision
from case start
22.5%
Ordered removed in absentia
person absent
15.2%
Decisions appealed to BIA
appeal rate
24.1%
Appeals remanded or reversed
29 appeals decided
Grant rates by type of relief
Share granted among merits decisions for each application type, since 2021.
Asylum
23.9%
88 decisions Moderate
Withholding / CAT
9.5%
147 decisions Moderate
Cancellation — 42B (non-LPR)
27.3%⚠
33 decisions Too few cases
Cancellation — 42A (LPR)
100%⚠
2 decisions Too few cases
Adjustment of status (245)
86.3%
51 decisions Moderate
Voluntary departure
89.3%⚠
28 decisions Too few cases
23.9%
of asylum claims granted on the merits Moderate
Based on 88 asylum decisions (grants + denials) since 2021.
This judge
23.9%
This court
12.6%
National average
31.8%
0%100% granted
In the bottom 47% 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 · 82 decisions since 2021
25.6%
Without a lawyer⚠unrepresented · 6 decisions since 2021
0%
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).