The Honorable Immigration Judge Stephanie Cotton

Jena, LA Immigration Court
Appointed August 2026 · President Donald Trump → Attorney General Todd Blanche
Less than a year on the immigration bench
Appointed under a Republican administration

Background

The Honorable Immigration Judge Stephanie Cotton was appointed as an immigration judge to begin hearing cases in August 2026. Judge Cotton earned an Associate of Science in court reporting in 1998 from the Prince Institute of Professional Studies, a Bachelor of Science in 2002 from Faulkner University, and a Juris Doctor in 2006 from Thomas Goode Jones School of Law. From June 2023 to August 2026, Judge Cotton served as legal counsel and hearing officer in the Legal Division of the Department of Finance, State of Alabama, in Montgomery. From 2007 to 2023, Judge Cotton was a sole practitioner at South Alabama Law in Andalusia, Alabama, while also serving as county attorney for Covington County, Alabama, and as municipal judge for the Town of River Falls, Alabama. Judge Cotton is a member of the Alabama State Bar.

Newly appointed. This judge was sworn in after the end of the case records this tool is built from, so no decisions of theirs appear in the data yet and there are no statistics on this page. The court, appointment date and biography below come from EOIR’s announcement of their appointment. Statistics will appear here once EOIR releases case data covering their docket.