Appointed December 2021 · President Joe Biden→ Attorney General Merrick Garland(AG inferred from date)
4 years on the immigration bench
Appointed under a Democratic administration
Background
The Honorable Immigration Judge Sarah Cade earned a Bachelor of Arts from Brandeis University in 2002, a Juris Doctor from the University of Mississippi in 2007, and a Master's in Leadership Studies from Meadville Lombard Theological School in 2018. She served as a judicial law clerk at the Buffalo Immigration Court (2008-2010), an attorney advisor at the Board of Immigration Appeals (2010-2018), and an assistant chief counsel in the ICE Office of the Principal Legal Advisor in Boston (2018-2021). She was appointed to the Boston Immigration Court in December 2021.
Caseload & process (since 2021)
1,356
Completions per year
8,138 total
1.3%
Detained at decision
share of cases
20 mo
Median time to decision
from case start
8.9%
Ordered removed in absentia
person absent
8.6%
Decisions appealed to BIA
appeal rate
9.3%
Appeals remanded or reversed
583 appeals decided
Grant rates by type of relief
Share granted among merits decisions for each application type, since 2021.
Asylum
48.8%
1,380 decisions High confidence
Withholding / CAT
1%
1,320 decisions High confidence
Cancellation — 42B (non-LPR)
57.6%⚠
33 decisions Too few cases
Cancellation — 42A (LPR)
50%⚠
2 decisions Too few cases
Adjustment of status (245)
97.8%⚠
45 decisions Too few cases
Voluntary departure
95%
180 decisions Moderate
48.8%
of asylum claims granted on the merits High confidence
Based on 1,380 asylum decisions (grants + denials) since 2021.
This judge
48.8%
This court
45.6%
National average
31.8%
0%100% granted
In the top 20% 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 · 1,325 decisions since 2021
49.4%
Without a lawyerunrepresented · 55 decisions since 2021
32.7%
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).