Appointed November 2023 · President Joe Biden→ Attorney General Merrick Garland
2 years on the immigration bench
Appointed under a Democratic administration
Background
The Honorable Immigration Judge Silvia Lopez earned a Bachelor of Arts in 2002 from Saint Mary's College of California and a Juris Doctor in 2007 from New York Law School. From 2021 to 2023, she served as an administrative law judge for New York State. From 2013 to 2021, she maintained a private practice at The Law Office of Silvia Lopez focusing on criminal defense litigation in New York. From 2008 to 2013, she worked as an assistant public defender at the Monroe County Public Defender's Office in New York, and from 2002 to 2004 she was a landlord-tenant counselor for Sentinel Fair Housing in Oakland, California. She is a member of the New York State Bar.
Caseload & process (since 2021)
270
Completions per year
1,080 total
0.5%
Detained at decision
share of cases
10.6 mo
Median time to decision
from case start
25.2%
Ordered removed in absentia
person absent
2.3%
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
72.8%
125 decisions Moderate
Withholding / CAT
8.3%
145 decisions Moderate
Adjustment of status (245)
100%⚠
1 decision Too few cases
Voluntary departure
100%⚠
1 decision Too few cases
72.8%
of asylum claims granted on the merits Moderate
Based on 125 asylum decisions (grants + denials) since 2021.
This judge
72.8%
This court
37.1%
National average
31.8%
0%100% granted
In the top 7% 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 · 113 decisions since 2021
70.8%
Without a lawyer⚠unrepresented · 12 decisions since 2021
91.7%
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).