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

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

Immigration judges

Eric J. Tijerina

Immigration Judge, San Antonio Immigration Court. Appointed August 2018 by Jeff Sessions.

Asylum record, FY 2021-2026

TRAC source →
Judge Tijerina43.4%
San Antonio court41.2%
All judges nationally62.9%
Decisions on the merits
528
Asylum granted
158
Other relief granted
141
Denied
229
Against own court
+2.2 pts
Denial rate by fiscal year
FY21FY22FY23FY24FY25FY26
63%12%31%47%56%44%

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

Docket

Respondents represented by counsel: 70% (nationally, 81% are represented).

Most common nationalities: Venezuela (18.6%), Nicaragua (13.8%), Cuba (12.1%), Honduras (10.8%), Colombia (9.7%).

Official biography

Attorney General Jeff Sessions appointed Eric J. Tijerina to begin hearing cases in August 2018.Judge Tijerina ear ned a Bachelor of Arts degree in 1991 from the University of Texas at Austin,a Master of Business Administration in 1996 from Texas Christian University, and a Juris Doctorin 2006 from St. Mary's University School of Law. From 2015 to 2018, he was a policy analyst with the Office of Policy and Strategy, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, Departmentof Homeland Security in Washington, D.C. From 2014 to 2015, he was associate director,Immigrant Children's Legal Program, U.S. Committee for Refugees and Immigrants in Arlington, Va. From 2010 to 2014, he was director of legal programs, Refugee and Immigrant Center for Education and Legal Services in San Antonio, Texas. From 2008 to 2010, he waste aching clinical fellow and supervising attorney for the St. Mary's University School of Law Immigration Clinic in San Antonio, Texas. From 2006 to 2008, he was lead attorney, Legal Orientation Program, Political Asylum Project of Austin, Texas. Judge Tijerina is a member ofthe State Bar of Texas.

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 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.