Source: EOIR — Find an Immigration Court.
Recording an internet-based hearing is prohibited (8 C.F.R. § 1003.28). Respondents without a representative default to in-person hearings.
Background
The Honorable Immigration Judge Jankhana Desai earned a Bachelor of Science in 1993 from the University of California, Irvine, a Master of Arts in 1995 from California State University, Fullerton, and a Juris Doctor in 2001 from the University of California, Berkeley School of Law, through the Berkeley-Harvard Law Degree Program. She served as a deputy district attorney in the Los Angeles County District Attorney's Office (2005-2009), as an administrative law judge with the California Office of Administrative Hearings (2011-2013), and as an administrative law judge with the New York State Department of Health (2015-2017), and taught as an adjunct professor at Western State College of Law. She is a member of the California, Illinois, New Jersey, and New York State Bars.
Caseload & process (since 2021)
1,137
Completions per year
6,820 total
1%
Detained at decision
share of cases
18 mo
Median time to decision
from case start
25.4%
Ordered removed in absentia
person absent
2.9%
Decisions appealed to BIA
appeal rate
14.3%
Appeals remanded or reversed
21 appeals decided
Grant rates by type of relief
Share granted among merits decisions for each application type, since 2021.
Asylum
30.1%
356 decisions High confidence
Withholding / CAT
3.6%
415 decisions High confidence
Cancellation — 42B (non-LPR)
94.3%
141 decisions Moderate
Cancellation — 42A (LPR)
90%⚠
10 decisions Too few cases
Adjustment of status (245)
86.4%⚠
22 decisions Too few cases
Voluntary departure
98.1%
54 decisions Moderate
30.1%
of asylum claims granted on the merits High confidence
Based on 356 asylum decisions (grants + denials) since 2021.
This judge
30.1%
This court
32.6%
National average
31.8%
0%100% granted
In the top 44% 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 · 344 decisions since 2021
29.4%
Without a lawyer⚠unrepresented · 12 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).