Appointed August 2003 · President George W. Bush→ Attorney General John Ashcroft(AG inferred from date)
23 years on the immigration bench
Appointed under a Republican administration
Background
The Honorable Immigration Judge Noel A Brennan earned a Bachelor of Arts from Marywood College in 1969, a Master of Arts from George Washington University in 1972, and a Juris Doctor from Georgetown University Law Center in 1985, where she has been an adjunct professor since 1991. She served on the Board of Immigration Appeals in Falls Church, Virginia, beginning in July 2000, and from 1994 to 2003 was a deputy assistant attorney general in the Office of Justice Programs. Earlier, she was an assistant U.S. attorney for the District of Columbia (1987-1994) and held law clerk roles in federal and local courts (1985-1987). Judge Brennan is a member of the District of Columbia, Pennsylvania, and New York bars.
Caseload & process (since 2021)
638
Completions per year
3,825 total
0.3%
Detained at decision
share of cases
16.6 mo
Median time to decision
from case start
19.7%
Ordered removed in absentia
person absent
1.9%
Decisions appealed to BIA
appeal rate
—
Appeals remanded or reversed
only 19 appeals — too few
Grant rates by type of relief
Share granted among merits decisions for each application type, since 2021.
Asylum
88.8%
561 decisions High confidence
Withholding / CAT
21.9%
128 decisions Moderate
Cancellation — 42B (non-LPR)
97.4%
116 decisions Moderate
Cancellation — 42A (LPR)
100%⚠
1 decision Too few cases
Adjustment of status (245)
100%
52 decisions Moderate
Voluntary departure
100%⚠
15 decisions Too few cases
88.8%
of asylum claims granted on the merits High confidence
Based on 561 asylum decisions (grants + denials) since 2021.
This judge
88.8%
This court
33.3%
National average
31.8%
0%100% granted
In the top 1% 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 · 547 decisions since 2021
89.2%
Without a lawyer⚠unrepresented · 14 decisions since 2021
71.4%
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).