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

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

Immigration judges

Richard Zanfardino

Immigration Judge, Portland Immigration Court. Appointed September 2016 by Loretta E. Lynch.

Asylum record, FY 2021-2026

TRAC source →
Judge Zanfardino62.4%
Portland - POO court60.5%
All judges nationally62.9%
Decisions on the merits
157
Asylum granted
52
Other relief granted
7
Denied
98
Against own court
+1.9 pts
Denial rate by fiscal year
FY22FY23
71%38%

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

Docket

Respondents represented by counsel: 85% (nationally, 81% are represented).

Most common nationalities: Guatemala (31.8%), Mexico (28%), India (8.3%), Honduras (7.6%), Venezuela (4.5%).

Official biography

Attorney General Loretta E. Lynch appointed Richard Zanfardino to begin hearing cases in September 2016. Judge Zanfardino ear ned both a Bachelor of Arts degree in 1989 and a Bachelor of Arts degree in 1990 from North Carolina State University, and a Juris Doctor in 1996 from the Columbus School of Law, Catholic University of America. From 2006 to September 2016, he served as a trial attorney for the Office of Immigration Litigation, Department of Justice (DOJ). From 1997 through 2006, he served as an attorney advisor for the Board of Immigration Appeals, Executive Office for Immigration Review, DOJ. From 2003 through 2004, he served as a special assistant U.S. attorney for the U.S. Attorney's Office, DOJ, in Washington, D.C. Judge Zanfardino is a member of the District of Columbia 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 Portland - POO

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.