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

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

Immigration judges

Paul M. Habich

Immigration Judge, Phoenix Immigration Court. Appointed April 2017 by Loretta E. Lynch.

Asylum record, FY 2021-2026

TRAC source →
Judge Habich80.8%
Phoenix court85.0%
All judges nationally62.9%
Decisions on the merits
772
Asylum granted
122
Other relief granted
26
Denied
624
Against own court
-4.2 pts
Denial rate by fiscal year
FY23FY24FY25FY26
52%60%82%91%

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

Docket

Respondents represented by counsel: 86% (nationally, 81% are represented).

Most common nationalities: Mexico (38.2%), Venezuela (13.1%), Guatemala (10.4%), Colombia (6.7%), Nicaragua (3.9%).

Official biography

Former Attorney General Loretta E. Lynch appointed Paul M. Habich to begin hearing cases in April 2017. Judge Habich ear ned a Bachelor of Arts degree in 2004 from The University of Wisconsin–Madison and a Juris Doctor in 2008 from the Arizona State University Sandra Day O'Connor College of Law. From June 2009 to March 2017, he served as an assistant chief counsel for the Office of Chief Counsel, Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Department of Homeland Security. From 2008 to 2009, he was an associate attorney with the law firm Lathrop & Clark LLP, in Madison, Wis. From 1996 through 2000, he served in the U.S. Marine Corps. Judge Habich is a member of the State Bar of Wisconsin.

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 Phoenix

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.