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

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

Immigration judges

Lucy Billings

Immigration Judge, New York - Varick. Appointed November 2023.

Asylum record, FY 2021-2026

TRAC source →
Judge Billings38.0%
New York - DET court60.9%
All judges nationally62.9%
Decisions on the merits
266
Asylum granted
153
Other relief granted
12
Denied
101
Against own court
-22.9 pts
Denial rate by fiscal year
FY24FY25
12%46%

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).

Official biography

Lucy Adams Billings was appointed as an immigration judge to begin hearing cases in November 2023. Judge Billings ear ned a Bachelor of Arts in 1970 from Smith College and a Juris Doctor in 1973 from the University of California at Berkeley School of Law. From 2004 to 2023, she served as a New York State Supreme Court justice. From 1998 to 2004, she was a New York City Criminal Court and Civil Court judge. From 1989 to 1997, and from 1982 to 1986, she was the director of litigation for Bronx Legal Services. From 1986 to 1989, she was staff counsel for the American Civil Liberties Union Children's Rights Project. In 1986, she was the director of Legal Support for Legal Services of New York City. From 1976 to 1982, she was a senior attorney at Utah Legal Services, and from 1973 to 1975, she was a staff attorney at Vermont Legal Aid. She is a co-author of the "Guide to New York Evidence," which serves as New York's de facto code of evidence. Judge Billings is a member of the New York State Bar, the Utah State Bar, and the Vermont 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 New York - DET

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.