New York · est. 2013Thursday, September 24, 2026
Inside Immigration

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

Immigration judges

Elizabeth Martinez

Immigration Judge, San Antonio Immigration Court. Appointed March 2019 by Matthew Whitaker.

LenientGrants far more often than the national average-20.4 points

Asylum record, FY 2021-2026

TRAC source →
Judge Martinez42.5%
San Antonio court41.2%
All judges nationally62.9%
Decisions on the merits
134
Asylum granted
10
Other relief granted
67
Denied
57
Against own court
+1.3 pts
Denial rate by fiscal year
FY25FY26
27%55%

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

Docket

Respondents represented by counsel: 67% (nationally, 81% are represented).

Most common nationalities: Venezuela (17.9%), Honduras (14.9%), Mexico (14.2%), Cuba (11.9%), Colombia (9.7%).

Official biography

Then-Acting Attorney General Matthew Whitaker appointed Elizabeth Martinez to begin hearing cases in March 2019. Judge Martinez earned a Bachelor of Arts in 1997 from Texas A&MInternational University and a Juris Doctor in 2000 from Texas Tech University School of Law. From 2007 to 2018, she was a solo practitioner with the Law Office of Elizabeth Martinez,PLLC in Laredo, Texas. From 2003 to 2007, she served as an assistant Webb County Public Defender in Laredo, Texas. From 2001 to 2003, she served as a juvenile prosecutor with the Office of the Webb County Attorney in Laredo, Texas. Judge Martinez is a member of the State Bar of Texas.

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

In the record

  • Executive Office for Immigration Review

    EOIR Notice: 31 New Immigration Judges

    EOIR's notice records that then-Acting Attorney General Matthew Whitaker appointed Elizabeth Martinez to begin hearing cases in March 2019 at the Pearsall Immigration Court, after eleven years as a solo practitioner in Texas.

Other judges at San Antonio

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.