Schiff, Vargas move to limit temporary immigration judges
Sen. Adam Schiff and Rep. Juan Vargas introduced legislation on Dec. 3, 2025 to restrict who the attorney general can appoint as temporary immigration judges, requiring prior appellate service, administrative judge experience, or 10 years in immigration law. The bill follows mass firings of immigration judges—at least 14 in the past two weeks and 90+ this year—and aims to block the administration’s plan to deploy up to 600 military lawyers without immigration-law experience; it currently has no GOP co-sponsors in a Republican-led Congress.
📌 Key Facts
- Bill introduced Dec. 3, 2025 by Sen. Adam Schiff (D‑Calif.) and Rep. Juan Vargas (D‑Calif.)
- Would bar most military JAGs from serving as temporary immigration judges absent specific experience (appellate, admin judge, or 10+ years immigration law)
- Union/NPR tally: at least 14 immigration judges fired in the last two weeks and more than 90 this year; latest firings in NYC, San Francisco, and Boston
📊 Relevant Data
As of August 2025, the US immigration court backlog stands at 3,432,519 active pending cases, with 2,271,857 of those awaiting asylum hearings.
Immigration Court Quick Facts — TRAC Reports
The US immigration court backlog is primarily driven by record border arrivals leading to an unprecedented number of asylum applications, exacerbating a shortage of judges and overwhelming the system.
Breaking the Cycle of Dysfunction at the U.S. Immigration Courts — Migration Policy Institute
In Fiscal Year 2023, asylum grant rates in US immigration courts varied significantly by nationality, with low rates for Latin American countries such as Mexico (4%), Haiti (4%), Cuba (5%), El Salvador (9%), Guatemala (8%), and Honduras (7%), compared to higher rates for countries like Eritrea (77%), Belarus (75%), Ethiopia (66%), Nepal (64%), Russia (62%), and China (55%).
Asylum Decision Rates by Nationality — US Department of Justice, Executive Office for Immigration Review
Between February and October 2025, 44% of the 70 identified fired immigration judges had backgrounds solely in immigrant defense with no prior DHS experience, compared to only 26% of remaining judges having such backgrounds.
The DOJ has been firing judges with immigrant defense backgrounds — NPR
US immigration court asylum grant rates declined from 51% in February 2024 to 19% in August 2025, with an average of 22% during the second Trump administration from February to August 2025.
Why Have Asylum Grant Rates Been Plummeting? — Center for Immigration Studies
In FY 2025 through August 2025, the top nationalities receiving deportation orders from US immigration courts were Mexicans (103,103 orders), Hondurans (68,330), Guatemalans (66,768), Venezuelans (37,158), and Colombians (29,554), reflecting overrepresentation of Latin American nationalities in deportation proceedings.
Immigration Court Quick Facts — TRAC Reports