New York · est. 2013Friday, September 4, 2026
Inside Immigration

Plain-language guides to US immigration, asylum and USCIS procedure.

Immigration judges

Brian Burke

Immigration Judge, Los Angeles-Van Nuys Boulevard Immigration Court. Appointed January 2020 by William P. Barr.

Asylum record, FY 2021-2026

TRAC source →
Judge Burke28.3%
Van Nuys court60.4%
All judges nationally62.9%
Decisions on the merits
392
Asylum granted
263
Other relief granted
18
Denied
111
Against own court
-32.1 pts
Denial rate by fiscal year
FY21FY22FY23FY24
79%22%18%13%

Read from TRAC's chart to the nearest point. Years with fewer than 25 decisions are not shown.

Docket

Respondents represented by counsel: 94% (nationally, 81% are represented).

Most common nationalities: Armenia (27.1%), El Salvador (10.7%), India (10.5%), Russia (9%), Guatemala (8.2%).

Official biography

Attorney General Barr appointed Brian H. Burke to begin hearing cases in January 2020. Judge Burke ear ned a Bachelor of Arts in 1989 from the University of Pittsburgh and a Juris Doctor in 1992 from the University of Dayton School of Law. From 2017 to 2019, he was the chief judge for the Morongo Band of Mission Indians, in California. From 2013 to 2019, he was the chief judge for the Ak-Chin Indian Community, in Maricopa, Arizona. From 2010 to 2013, he was the tribal prosecutor for the Ak-Chin Indian Community, in Maricopa, Arizona. From 2009 to 2010, he was a deputy defense attorney for the Salt River Pima-Maricopa Indian Community, in Scottsdale, Arizona. From 2006 to 2009, he was the mana ging attorney for Community Legal Services, in Kingman, Arizona. From 2003 to 2006, he was a rights attorney for the Nevada Disability Advocacy and Law Center, in Las Vegas. From 2000 to 2003, he was assistant public defender for the Beaver County Public Defender's Office, in Beaver, Pennsylvania. From 1999 to 2000, he was a staff attorney for Appalachian Legal Services, in Charleston, West Virginia. From 1992 to 1995, and 1997 to 1998, he served as assistant district attorney for the Beaver County District Attorney's Office. Judge Burke is a member of the Arizona State Bar and the Pennsylvania State Bar.

As published by the Executive Office for Immigration Review at appointment, via TRAC.

In the record

No published reporting or appellate decisions naming this judge have been collected yet.

Other judges at Van Nuys

Court page →

About these figures. Denial rates describe outcomes in the cases a judge happened to hear, which differ by detention, nationality and representation. They are not a measure of fairness or competence. Method and sources are on the judges index.