Boston immigration court
Address
Boston Immigration Court: 15 New Sudbury Street, Room 320, Boston, MA 02203
Court decisions over 12 months
In plain words
Out of every 100 cases decided in this court, 5 got relief. Even so, most end without relief.
5 of every 10 cases were decided in absentia, without the person at the hearing. Going to your hearing is the most important thing you can do.
With an attorney, 10 of every 100 got relief; without one, 0 of every 100 (10.3 % and 0.1 %).
Of the 12,491 decisions in this court, 629 ended with relief, 2,176 with the case closed, 483 with voluntary departure and 9,203 with a removal order.
| Outcome | Decisions | % |
|---|---|---|
| Relief | 629 | 5.0 % |
| Case closed | 2,176 | 17.4 % |
| Voluntary departure | 483 | 3.9 % |
| Removal order | 9,203 | 73.7 % |
| Decided in absentia | 6,201 | 49.6 % |
This court and the nation
With the Boston court, the share of cases with relief is 5.0 %: higher than nationwide (2.4 %).
With the Boston court, the share of removal orders is 73.7 %: lower than nationwide (75.6 %).
With the Boston court, the share of cases decided in absentia is 49.6 %: higher than nationwide (45.3 %).
With the Boston court, the share of people with an attorney is 48.3 %: higher than nationwide (38.1 %).
Cases with the Boston court take longer than nationwide: a median of 1,237 days versus 793.
With and without an attorney
| Decisions | Relief | |
|---|---|---|
| With an attorney | 6,037 | 10.3 % |
| Without an attorney | 6,454 | 0.1 % |
Compared with other courts
- Ranked 12 of 71 courts for relief (1 = most relief).
- Ranked 24 of 71 courts for cases decided in absentia (1 = most in absentia).
Decisions per month (Sep 2025 – Aug 2026)
The busiest month was Jul 2026 (1,626 decisions) and the quietest Dec 2025 (743).
| Month | Decisions | Relief | In absentia | Vs. prior month |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sep 2025 | 1,063 | 82 | 381 | — |
| Oct 2025 | 993 | 80 | 383 | down |
| Nov 2025 | 800 | 76 | 365 | down |
| Dec 2025 | 743 | 45 | 321 | down |
| Jan 2026 | 947 | 42 | 468 | up |
| Feb 2026 | 749 | 62 | 265 | down |
| Mar 2026 | 1,042 | 54 | 393 | up |
| Apr 2026 | 771 | 36 | 274 | down |
| May 2026 | 877 | 56 | 410 | up |
| Jun 2026 | 1,355 | 52 | 830 | up |
| Jul 2026 | 1,626 | 32 | 992 | up |
| Aug 2026 | 1,525 | 12 | 1,119 | down |
Months with fewer than 5 decisions are dotted: with so few cases, that month's percentage says little.
Judges at this court
13 judges have this as their main court in the window (1 with limited data). The one who decided the most was Mario J. Sturla, with 2,829 decisions.
Sorted by decisions over 12 months. The label compares each judge with the other judges in the court.
| Judge | Decisions | Relief | In absentia | Vs. the court |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Judge Mario J. Sturla | 2,829 | 2.7 % | 66.6 % | Less relief: Less relief than the other judges in this court |
| Judge Michelle Kahan | 2,057 | 2.7 % | 69.0 % | Less relief: Less relief than the other judges in this court |
| Judge Todd A. Masters | 1,925 | 3.5 % | 20.1 % | Less relief: Less relief than the other judges in this court |
| Judge Brenda O'Malley | 1,673 | 10.2 % | 43.6 % | More relief: More relief than the other judges in this court |
| Judge John M., JR. Furlong | 1,587 | 3.7 % | 54.1 % | Less relief: Less relief than the other judges in this court |
| Judge Roopal Patel | 769 | 12.2 % | 32.6 % | More relief: More relief than the other judges in this court |
| Judge Erin Gover | 693 | 15.0 % | 30.6 % | More relief: More relief than the other judges in this court |
| Judge Mark D. Donovan | 399 | 11.3 % | 27.3 % | More relief: More relief than the other judges in this court |
| Judge Taylor Gillespie | 225 | 0.4 % | 45.8 % | Less relief: Less relief than the other judges in this court |
| Judge Omar Z. Karram | 217 | 1.8 % | 43.8 % | Less relief: Less relief than the other judges in this court |
| Judge Patricia W. Walter | 191 | 2.1 % | 55.0 % | Similar: Relief similar to the other judges in this court |
| Judge Tanzania Jaysura | 124 | 0.8 % | 48.4 % | Less relief: Less relief than the other judges in this court |
| Judge Nicole Jergovic | 9 | limited data | limited data | Limited data: Not enough data to compare |