The Honorable Immigration Judge Susan Phan

Sacramento, CA Immigration Court
Appointed May 2019 · President Donald Trump Attorney General William P. Barr
7 years on the immigration bench
Appointed under a Republican administration

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Background

The Honorable Immigration Judge Susan Phan earned a Bachelor of Arts in 2001 and a Juris Doctor in 2004, both from the University of California, Los Angeles. She served as an assistant chief counsel for ICE's Office of Chief Counsel in San Francisco, as an assistant general counsel for the State Bar of California, as a special assistant and assistant U.S. attorney for the Northern and Eastern Districts of California, and as an assistant attorney general with the District of Columbia Attorney General's Office.

Caseload & process (since 2021)
1,303
Completions per year
7,816 total
6.4%
Detained at decision
share of cases
13.2 mo
Median time to decision
from case start
19.3%
Ordered removed in absentia
person absent
8.6%
Decisions appealed to BIA
appeal rate
11.1%
Appeals remanded or reversed
199 appeals decided

Bond decisions

Custody redetermination (bond) rulings since 2021. "Granted" means the judge lowered the bond, ordered release on recognizance, or otherwise granted the request.
17.6%
Bond requests granted
204 bond decisions High confidence
$10,000
Median bond when set
67 bonds with amounts
0%
Released on own recognizance
This judge 17.6%
Court average 50% · median $20,000
National 41.9% · median $6,500

Grant rates by type of relief

Share granted among merits decisions for each application type, since 2021.
Asylum
60.8% 1,532 decisions High confidence
Withholding / CAT
6.2% 883 decisions High confidence
Cancellation — 42B (non-LPR)
93.1% 58 decisions Moderate
Cancellation — 42A (LPR)
100% 1 decision Too few cases
Adjustment of status (245)
85.7% 21 decisions Too few cases
Voluntary departure
69.7% 152 decisions Moderate
60.8%
of asylum claims granted on the merits High confidence
Based on 1,532 asylum decisions (grants + denials) since 2021.
This judge
60.8%
This court
66%
National average
31.8%
0%100% granted
In the top 12% 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 · 1,208 decisions since 2021
63.7%
Without a lawyerunrepresented · 324 decisions since 2021
49.7%

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.
0% 25% 50% 75% 100%2019: 50.7% of 424 decisions50.7%20192020: 38.6% of 324 decisions38.6%20202021: 46.5% of 142 decisions46.5%20212022: 49% of 404 decisions49%20222023: 81% of 168 decisions81%20232024: 78% of 364 decisions78%20242025: 62.2% of 384 decisions62.2%20252026 (partial year): 11.4% of 70 decisions11.4%2026*
* 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).
Sacramento, CA · home court
5,200 (67%)
1,366 (17%)
755 (9.7%)
37 (0.47%)
37 (0.47%)
34 (0.44%)