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 Sarah Beth Yeomans earned a Bachelor of Arts in 2003 from American University and a Juris Doctor in 2007 from Georgetown University Law Center. From 2014 to 2022 she practiced immigration law at Immigration Counsel PLLC in Washington, D.C., and from 2012 to 2014 was an associate attorney at the Law Office of Manuel Rivera, Esq. & Associates PC in Arlington, Virginia. Earlier she worked as a contract attorney in commercial litigation in Washington and as an associate attorney in New York.
Caseload & process (since 2021)
717
Completions per year
4,304 total
0.8%
Detained at decision
share of cases
26.9 mo
Median time to decision
from case start
32.7%
Ordered removed in absentia
person absent
11.7%
Decisions appealed to BIA
appeal rate
5.9%
Appeals remanded or reversed
34 appeals decided
Grant rates by type of relief
Share granted among merits decisions for each application type, since 2021.
Asylum
32.6%
800 decisions High confidence
Withholding / CAT
4.1%
1,030 decisions High confidence
Cancellation — 42B (non-LPR)
0%⚠
25 decisions Too few cases
Cancellation — 42A (LPR)
0%⚠
1 decision Too few cases
Adjustment of status (245)
90%⚠
10 decisions Too few cases
Voluntary departure
97.7%
133 decisions Moderate
32.6%
of asylum claims granted on the merits High confidence
Based on 800 asylum decisions (grants + denials) since 2021.
This judge
32.6%
This court
26.2%
National average
31.8%
0%100% granted
In the top 40% 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 · 703 decisions since 2021
36.8%
Without a lawyerunrepresented · 97 decisions since 2021
2.1%
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).