The Honorable Immigration Judge Themistoklis Aliferis
New York — Varick Street, NY Immigration Court
Appointed February 2023 · President Joe Biden→ Attorney General Merrick Garland
3 years on the immigration bench
Appointed under a Democratic administration
Background
The Honorable Immigration Judge Themistoklis Aliferis earned a Bachelor of Arts in 1996 from Louisiana Tech University and a Juris Doctor in 2000 from the Louisiana State University Paul M. Hebert Law Center. From 2018 to 2022, he served as an assistant chief counsel, Office of the Principal Legal Advisor, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement/DHS, in Miami. From 2007 to 2018, he was a solo practitioner representing noncitizens before the Miami immigration court and USCIS. Earlier he practiced international trade law in La Paz, Bolivia (2005-2006), served as commercial law counsel in Montreal, Canada (2002-2005), was a civil litigation attorney in New Orleans (2001-2002), and clerked for the 15th Judicial District Court of Louisiana in 2000. He is a member of the Florida and Louisiana bars.
Caseload & process (since 2021)
332
Completions per year
995 total
0.5%
Detained at decision
share of cases
14.3 mo
Median time to decision
from case start
18.9%
Ordered removed in absentia
person absent
5.6%
Decisions appealed to BIA
appeal rate
0%
Appeals remanded or reversed
41 appeals decided
Grant rates by type of relief
Share granted among merits decisions for each application type, since 2021.
Asylum
51.7%
143 decisions Moderate
Withholding / CAT
2.9%
139 decisions Moderate
Cancellation — 42B (non-LPR)
0%⚠
2 decisions Too few cases
Adjustment of status (245)
85.7%⚠
7 decisions Too few cases
Voluntary departure
100%⚠
10 decisions Too few cases
51.7%
of asylum claims granted on the merits Moderate
Based on 143 asylum decisions (grants + denials) since 2021.
This judge
51.7%
This court
37.1%
National average
31.8%
0%100% granted
In the top 18% 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 · 114 decisions since 2021
58.8%
Without a lawyer⚠unrepresented · 29 decisions since 2021
24.1%
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.
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).