The Honorable Immigration Judge Walter L Paulissen
Pearsall, TX Immigration Court
Appointed March 2019 · President Donald Trump→ Attorney General Matthew Whitaker
7 years on the immigration bench
Appointed under a Republican administration
Background
The Honorable Immigration Judge Walter L Paulissen earned a Bachelor of Business Administration in 1977 from the University of Texas at Austin and a Juris Doctor in 1980 from the University of Texas School of Law. He served as an assistant U.S. attorney in the Western District of Texas from 2013 to 2019, where he was also chief of Major Crimes from 2000 to 2013. Earlier he was an assistant U.S. attorney in San Antonio and Houston (1990-2000) and practiced corporate and private law in Houston (1980-1990).
Caseload & process (since 2021)
1,431
Completions per year
7,153 total
39.2%
Detained at decision
share of cases
0.6 mo
Median time to decision
from case start
0%
Ordered removed in absentia
person absent
1.2%
Decisions appealed to BIA
appeal rate
27.6%
Appeals remanded or reversed
76 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.
48.5%
Bond requests granted
761 bond decisions High confidence
$7,500
Median bond when set
365 bonds with amounts
0%
Released on own recognizance
This judge 48.5%
Court average 39% · median $7,500
National 41.9% · median $6,500
Grant rates by type of relief
Share granted among merits decisions for each application type, since 2021.
Asylum
14.9%
282 decisions High confidence
Withholding / CAT
3.7%
829 decisions High confidence
Cancellation — 42B (non-LPR)
3.2%⚠
31 decisions Too few cases
Cancellation — 42A (LPR)
70%⚠
10 decisions Too few cases
Adjustment of status (245)
42.9%⚠
7 decisions Too few cases
Voluntary departure
33.9%
446 decisions High confidence
14.9%
of asylum claims granted on the merits High confidence
Based on 282 asylum decisions (grants + denials) since 2021.
This judge
14.9%
This court
11.9%
National average
31.8%
0%100% granted
In the bottom 31% 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 · 111 decisions since 2021
24.3%
Without a lawyerunrepresented · 171 decisions since 2021
8.8%
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).