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

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

Immigration judges

Joyce A. Bakke Varzandeh

Immigration Judge, Los Angeles - West Los Angeles Immigration Court. Appointed November 2009.

Asylum record, FY 2021-2026

TRAC source →
Judge Varzandeh51.7%
Los Angeles - WLA court61.2%
All judges nationally62.9%
Decisions on the merits
269
Asylum granted
109
Other relief granted
21
Denied
139
Against own court
-9.5 pts
Denial rate by fiscal year
FY21FY23FY24FY25FY26
84%17%16%63%80%

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: China (17.5%), El Salvador (17.1%), Mexico (13%), Guatemala (10.8%), Nicaragua (9.3%).

Official biography

Judge Bakke Varzandeh was appointed as an immigration judge in November 2009. Shereceived a bachelor of arts degree in 1995 from Louisiana State University and a juris doctoratein 1998 from Southern University Law Center. For ICE, DHS, in Los Angeles, Judge Bakke Varzandeh held several positions: from 2008 to November 2009, Judge Bakke Varzandeh serve das a deputy chief counsel; from 2007 to 2008, she served as a senior attorney; and from 2003 to2007, she worked as an assistant chief counsel. From 1998 to 2003, Judge Bakke Varzandehserved as an assistant district counsel for the former INS in Los Angeles. From 1997 to 1998,she served as a law clerk for the U.S. Attorney's Office, Middle District of Louisiana. From1996 to 1997, Judge Bakke Varzandeh worked as a law clerk in the Office of the Attorney General, Louisiana Department of Justice, in Baton Rouge, La. Judge Bakke Varzandeh is am ember of the Louisiana 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 Los Angeles - WLA

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.