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Military Lawyers to Temporarily Fill Immigration Judge Roles
Amid a growing backlog of immigration cases, approximately 600 military lawyers have been approved to serve as temporary immigration judges within the Justice Department. A U.S. official, speaking under condition of anonymity, indicated that as many as 150 of these lawyers could begin work as early as this week.
This move follows recent changes to the qualifications for temporary immigration judges, effectively streamlining the process and removing the previous requirement of prior immigration experience. The Justice Department enacted these changes last week.
Immigration judges hold significant authority in immigration proceedings, possessing the sole power to revoke green cards and issue final deportation orders for individuals who have resided in the U.S. for over two years. The military lawyers tapped for these temporary positions will undergo approximately two weeks of training before assuming their judicial duties.
The Trump administration’s push for stricter immigration enforcement has led to a surge in arrests and detentions, exacerbating the existing backlog of nearly 4 million cases within the Executive Office for Immigration Review (EOIR), the agency responsible for immigration courts. The EOIR has also seen a significant decrease in the number of judges in recent months, losing over 100 through firings and resignations since the start of the year.
To address the mounting caseload, the Department of Homeland Security has initiated a national recruitment effort to bolster the ranks of deportation officers, investigators, and attorneys, fueled by increased Congressional funding. Earlier this year, Congress allocated over $3 billion to the Justice Department for immigration-related activities, including the hiring of more immigration judges.
President Trump has previously expressed support for utilizing military lawyers in immigration court proceedings, and this latest move appears to be in line with that objective. While the hiring and training of permanent immigration judges can be a lengthy process, often exceeding a year, the deployment of military lawyers as temporary judges is intended as a more immediate solution to address the burgeoning backlog.