Appointed February 2017 · President Barack Obama→ Attorney General Loretta E. Lynch
9 years on the immigration bench
Appointed under a Democratic administration
Background
The Honorable Immigration Judge Julie L Nelson earned a Bachelor of Arts in 2003 from Biola University and a Juris Doctor in 2006 from California Western School of Law. She served as a judicial law clerk and attorney advisor with the Department of Justice's immigration courts in San Diego and Los Angeles, taught as an adjunct professor at Biola University, and worked as an assistant chief counsel for U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement in Eloy, Arizona, from 2009 to 2017. She is a member of the State Bar of California.
Caseload & process (since 2021)
732
Completions per year
4,394 total
4.1%
Detained at decision
share of cases
29.5 mo
Median time to decision
from case start
32.5%
Ordered removed in absentia
person absent
11.1%
Decisions appealed to BIA
appeal rate
6.8%
Appeals remanded or reversed
74 appeals decided
Bond decisions
Custody redetermination (bond) rulings since 2021.
"Granted" means the judge lowered the bond, ordered release on recognizance, or otherwise granted the request.
9.1%⚠
Bond requests granted
11 bond decisions Too few cases
$9,000
Median bond when set
2 bonds with amounts
0%
Released on own recognizance
This judge 9.1%
Court average 26.3% · median $4,000
National 41.9% · median $6,500
Grant rates by type of relief
Share granted among merits decisions for each application type, since 2021.
Asylum
20.9%
609 decisions High confidence
Withholding / CAT
5.3%
914 decisions High confidence
Cancellation — 42B (non-LPR)
42%
169 decisions Moderate
Cancellation — 42A (LPR)
52.6%⚠
19 decisions Too few cases
Adjustment of status (245)
77.4%
53 decisions Moderate
Voluntary departure
50.5%
99 decisions Moderate
20.9%
of asylum claims granted on the merits High confidence
Based on 609 asylum decisions (grants + denials) since 2021.
This judge
20.9%
This court
68.2%
National average
31.8%
0%100% granted
In the bottom 42% 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 · 445 decisions since 2021
27.6%
Without a lawyerunrepresented · 164 decisions since 2021
2.4%
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).