The Honorable Immigration Judge Maria Baldini-Potermin
Chicago, IL Immigration Court
Appointed May 2023 · President Joe Biden→ Attorney General Merrick Garland
3 years on the immigration bench
Appointed under a Democratic administration
Background
The Honorable Immigration Judge Maria Baldini-Potermin earned a Bachelor of Arts in 1990 from the University of Dayton and a Juris Doctor in 1997 from the University of Minnesota Law School. She owned and managed her own immigration law practice in Chicago from 2008 to 2023 and co-authored the Immigration Trial Handbook and served as update editor for Immigration Law and Crimes. She served on the board of the National Immigration Project of the National Lawyers Guild from 2009 to 2021, including as chair and interim executive director in 2019, following earlier associate and fellowship roles with immigrant rights organizations.
Caseload & process (since 2021)
429
Completions per year
2,144 total
16.2%
Detained at decision
share of cases
9.8 mo
Median time to decision
from case start
11.2%
Ordered removed in absentia
person absent
0.7%
Decisions appealed to BIA
appeal rate
—
Appeals remanded or reversed
only 5 appeals — too few
Bond decisions
Custody redetermination (bond) rulings since 2021.
"Granted" means the judge lowered the bond, ordered release on recognizance, or otherwise granted the request.
62.9%
Bond requests granted
229 bond decisions High confidence
$5,000
Median bond when set
132 bonds with amounts
2.1%
Released on own recognizance
This judge 62.9%
Court average 56.1% · median $3,500
National 41.9% · median $6,500
Grant rates by type of relief
Share granted among merits decisions for each application type, since 2021.
Asylum
56.3%
87 decisions Moderate
Withholding / CAT
27.5%
138 decisions Moderate
Cancellation — 42A (LPR)
91.7%⚠
12 decisions Too few cases
Adjustment of status (245)
100%⚠
2 decisions Too few cases
Voluntary departure
85.4%
82 decisions Moderate
56.3%
of asylum claims granted on the merits Moderate
Based on 87 asylum decisions (grants + denials) since 2021.
This judge
56.3%
This court
45.7%
National average
31.8%
0%100% granted
In the top 15% 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 · 72 decisions since 2021
59.7%
Without a lawyer⚠unrepresented · 15 decisions since 2021
40%
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).