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

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

Immigration judges

Lena Golovnin

Immigration Judge, New York/Federal Plaza Immigration Court. Appointed August 2018 by Jeff Sessions.

Asylum record, FY 2021-2026

TRAC source →
Judge Golovnin39.7%
New York court47.7%
All judges nationally62.9%
Decisions on the merits
807
Asylum granted
435
Other relief granted
52
Denied
320
Against own court
-8.0 pts
Denial rate by fiscal year
FY22FY23FY24FY25FY26
13%7%6%46%88%

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

Docket

Respondents represented by counsel: 91% (nationally, 81% are represented).

Most common nationalities: China (21.4%), India (13.8%), Bangladesh (8.8%), Ecuador (8.7%), El Salvador (5.5%).

Official biography

Attorney General Jeff Sessions appointed Lena Golovnin to begin hearing cases in August 2018.Judge Golovnin ear ned a Bachelor of Arts degree in 2002 from Hunter College and a Juris Doctor in 2008 from the Thomas M. Cooley Law School. From 2010 to 2018, she was assistant chief counsel for the Office of the Chief Counsel, Immigration and Customs Enforcement,Department of Homeland Security in New York, N.Y. From 2009 to 2010, she was attorney advisor for the Executive Office for Immigration Review (EOIR), Department of Justice (DOJ),also in New York, N.Y. From 2008 to 2009, she was a judicial law clerk and later attorney advisor for EOIR, DOJ in San Antonio, Texas. Judge Golovnin is a member of the New York State Bar and the State Bar of Michigan.

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 New York

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.