Leo A. Finston
Immigration Judge, Newark Immigration Court. Appointed October 2010 by Eric Holder.
Asylum record, FY 2021-2026
TRAC source →- Decisions on the merits
- 587
- Asylum granted
- 284
- Other relief granted
- 81
- Denied
- 222
- Against own court
- -32.5 pts
| FY22 | FY23 | FY24 | FY25 | FY26 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 42% | 21% | 48% | 46% | 29% |
Docket
Respondents represented by counsel: 80% (nationally, 81% are represented).
Most common nationalities: Ecuador (15.7%), Guatemala (8.7%), Nigeria (8.2%), Colombia (7.3%), El Salvador (7.2%).
Official biography
Attorney General Eric Holder appointed Judge Finston in October 2010. Judge Finston received a bachelor of arts degree in 1988 from the City University of New York and a juris doctorate in 1991 from Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law. From 1997 to October 2010, he served as an assistant chief counsel, Department of Homeland Security, Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Office of the Chief Counsel, Newark, N.J. From 1992 to 1997, he was an asylum officer for the former Immigration and Naturalization Service, Office of International Affairs, Newark. Judge Finston is a member of the New Jersey and New York State Bars.
In the record
No published reporting or appellate decisions naming this judge have been collected yet.
Other judges at Newark
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.