The Honorable Immigration Judge Mary Catherine Vergona
Sterling, VA Immigration Court
Appointed August 2022 · President Joe Biden→ Attorney General Merrick Garland
4 years on the immigration bench
Appointed under a Democratic administration
Background
The Honorable Immigration Judge Mary Catherine Vergona earned a Bachelor of Science in 1987 from Miami University in Oxford, Ohio, a Juris Doctor in 1997 from The University of Akron, and a Master of Laws in military law in 2005 from The Judge Advocate General's Legal Center and School in Charlottesville, Virginia. From 1998 to 2022 she served as a judge advocate in the U.S. Army, culminating in service as a circuit judge from 2019 to 2022 at Fort Belvoir, Virginia.
Caseload & process (since 2021)
118
Completions per year
355 total
0%
Detained at decision
share of cases
47 mo
Median time to decision
from case start
5.5%
Ordered removed in absentia
person absent
13.5%
Decisions appealed to BIA
appeal rate
—
Appeals remanded or reversed
only 9 appeals — too few
Grant rates by type of relief
Share granted among merits decisions for each application type, since 2021.
Asylum
21.7%⚠
46 decisions Too few cases
Withholding / CAT
12.6%
87 decisions Moderate
Cancellation — 42B (non-LPR)
0%⚠
10 decisions Too few cases
Cancellation — 42A (LPR)
0%⚠
1 decision Too few cases
Adjustment of status (245)
83.3%⚠
6 decisions Too few cases
Voluntary departure
77.8%⚠
9 decisions Too few cases
21.7%⚠
of asylum claims granted on the merits
Based on 46 asylum decisions (grants + denials) since 2021. Fewer than 50 — treat this figure with caution.
This judge
21.7%
This court
26.2%
National average
31.8%
0%100% granted
Does a lawyer matter here?
Asylum grant rate by whether the person had legal representation.
With a lawyer⚠represented · 45 decisions since 2021
22.2%
Without a lawyer⚠unrepresented · 1 decision 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).