Trump Administration Accelerates Immigration Judge Hiring Amid Backlog and Allegations of Bias

Trump Administration Races to Fill Immigration Judge Vacancies

The Trump administration is attempting to clear the nation’s immigration backlog by appointing hundreds of new immigration judges with little to no experience in immigration law. As of now, 700 immigration judges are responsible for handling more than three million pending immigration cases.

According to an investigation by The Washington Post, the Justice Department has fired more than 100 immigration judges since Donald Trump returned to office in January 2025. An additional similar number have retired, creating a significant void in the judiciary. To fill these positions, the DOJ has launched an aggressive recruitment drive, targeting at least 140 individuals with minimal or no prior experience in immigration law.

New Judges Lack Immigration Law Expertise

The newly appointed judges include professionals with backgrounds in unrelated legal fields. Among them are:

• A divorce lawyer who pledged to “fight exclusively for the rights of men,”
• A Minnesota attorney who supported ICE raids in Minneapolis that resulted in the deaths of two U.S. citizens at the hands of federal agents, and
• A judge who denied humanitarian protection to a Serbian immigrant because he did not appear “overtly gay.”

These appointments follow what former immigration judges describe as “completely inadequate and highly biased” training. Christopher Day, a former immigration judge, testified before Congress in March 2025 that the training process has been drastically shortened from the historical standard of five weeks—which included observing court hearings, mock trials, and mentored case practice—to just three weeks, according to the National Association of Immigration Judges.

Former Judges Allege Systematic Removal of Dissent

Former judges who were forced out claim the administration is deliberately excising dissent from the judiciary. The DOJ has reportedly targeted those who ruled against the government’s positions, as reported by The Washington Post.

“They’re trying to create a malleable workforce that will do what they want without question. That’s what I think the goal is.”

— Kerry Doyle, former ICE official turned immigration judge, hired under President Biden and fired in 2024 before her tenure began

Mass Deportation Push Faces Legal and Logistical Hurdles

The Trump administration has made mass deportation a central pillar of its immigration policy, with officials repeatedly vowing to deport up to one million people per year during Trump’s current term. Under former Attorney General Pam Bondi, the Justice Department reallocated significant resources toward arresting and prosecuting noncriminal immigrants, resulting in the abandonment of tens of thousands of criminal investigations.

Despite these efforts, actual deportation numbers have fallen short of targets. A December 2024 memo from the Department of Homeland Security revealed that 605,000 individuals had been deported since Trump’s return. The agency inflated this figure by including 1.9 million people who were encouraged to “voluntarily self-deport,” a practice critics argue misrepresents enforcement outcomes.

Judicial Independence Under Pressure

Immigration court serves as a legally required step before deportation, yet the administration has shown little regard for legal constraints. The DOJ has prioritized speed over due process, placing an unprecedented burden on judges to meet White House demands.

In a recent development, six federal judges were fired this month for prioritizing legal requirements over the administration’s agenda. At least two additional judges have faced similar consequences in recent weeks.