Appointed October 2022 · 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 Howard R Davis earned a Bachelor of Arts in 1978 from the University of California, Berkeley, and a Juris Doctor in 1992 from Loyola Law School, Los Angeles. He practiced law in the Los Angeles area for nearly three decades, including as a solo practitioner from 2006 to 2019 and as an associate attorney at Nalbandian Law, APC in Glendale, California, from 2019 to 2022. He is a member of the State Bar of California.
Caseload & process (since 2021)
642
Completions per year
3,854 total
1.7%
Detained at decision
share of cases
29.6 mo
Median time to decision
from case start
21.4%
Ordered removed in absentia
person absent
2.6%
Decisions appealed to BIA
appeal rate
—
Appeals remanded or reversed
only 13 appeals — too few
Grant rates by type of relief
Share granted among merits decisions for each application type, since 2021.
Asylum
77.7%
551 decisions High confidence
Withholding / CAT
5.6%
215 decisions High confidence
Cancellation — 42B (non-LPR)
66.7%⚠
12 decisions Too few cases
Cancellation — 42A (LPR)
100%⚠
8 decisions Too few cases
Adjustment of status (245)
100%⚠
27 decisions Too few cases
Voluntary departure
100%⚠
17 decisions Too few cases
77.7%
of asylum claims granted on the merits High confidence
Based on 551 asylum decisions (grants + denials) since 2021.
This judge
77.7%
This court
68.2%
National average
31.8%
0%100% granted
In the top 6% 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 · 543 decisions since 2021
77.9%
Without a lawyer⚠unrepresented · 8 decisions since 2021
62.5%
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).