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

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

Immigration judges

Matthew O'Brien

Immigration Judge, Annandale Immigration Court. Appointed June 2020 by William P. Barr.

Asylum record, FY 2021-2026

TRAC source →
Judge O'Brien84.6%
Arlington court46.3%
All judges nationally62.9%
Decisions on the merits
285
Asylum granted
30
Other relief granted
14
Denied
241
Against own court
+38.3 pts
Denial rate by fiscal year
FY21FY22
92%93%

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: El Salvador (54.7%), Honduras (27%), Guatemala (13.7%), Ethiopia (1.4%), Syria (1.1%).

Official biography

Attorney General William P. Barr appointed Matthew J. O'Brien as an immigration judge in June 2020. Judge O'Brien ear ned a Bachelor of Arts in 1991 from the Johns Hopkins University,a Juris Doctor in 1995 from the University of Maine School of Law, and a Master of Arts in2018 from the Institute of World Politics. From 2016 to 2020, he served as the director of research at the Federation for American Immigration Reform. From 2014 to 2016, he served as asupervisory immigration officer, Headquarters Component, Fraud Detection and National Security Directorate (FDNS), U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), Departmentof Homeland Security (DHS), in the District of Columbia. From 2011 to 2014, he served as asenior advisor to the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services Ombudsman, DHS, in the District of Columbia. From 2008 to 2011, he served as supervisory policy analyst, Headquarters,FDNS, USCIS, DHS, in the District of Columbia. From 2003 to 2008, he served as assistant chief counsel, Institutional Hearing Program, Office of Chief Counsel, Office of the Principal Legal Advisor, Immigration and Customs Enforcement, DHS, in New York. From 1997 to 2003,he was in private practice, in Boston and New York. From 1996 to 1997, he served as a districtadjudications officer with the former Immigration and Naturalization Service, Department of Justice. Judge O'Brien is a member of the Massachusetts 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 Arlington

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.