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

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

Immigration judges

Rico M. Sogocio

Immigration Judge, Miami Immigration Court. Appointed October 2016 by Loretta E. Lynch.

Asylum record, FY 2021-2026

TRAC source →
Judge Sogocio74.3%
Miami court71.5%
All judges nationally62.9%
Decisions on the merits
428
Asylum granted
75
Other relief granted
35
Denied
318
Against own court
+2.8 pts
Denial rate by fiscal year
FY21FY22FY23FY24FY25FY26
81%74%77%72%69%76%

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: Nicaragua (17.3%), Guatemala (17.1%), Cuba (14.7%), Honduras (13.8%), Venezuela (13.8%).

Official biography

Attorney General Loretta E. Lynch appointed Rico M. Sogocio to begin hearing cases in October 2016. Judge Sogocio ear ned a Bachelor of Arts degree in 1987 from Northwestern University and a Juris Doctor in 1992 from the Catholic University of America Columbus School of Law. From 2010 to October 2016, he served as a senior counsel for the Office of the General Counsel, Executive Office for Immigration Review, Department of Justice (DOJ), in Falls Church, Va. From 2002 through 2010, he held numerous positions in private practice, including: from 2008 through 2010 as principal and general counsel for Miami Media Labs LLC, in Miami; from 2005 through 2007 as an outside legal advisor for Nextream Broadband Inc., in Hallandale, Fla.; from 2004 through 2006 as principal and general counsel for IMPro Services Inc., in Miami; and from 2002 through 2010 as of-counsel for Burgos & Sosa PA, in Miami. From 2001 through 2003, he served as a consultant for Plave Manten Consulting Group and as corporate counsel for PMC4 LLC, in Aventura, Fla. From 1999 through 2001, he served as a litigation associate for Gunster, Yoakley & Stewart PA, in Miami. From 1994 through 1999, he served in various capacities for the former Immigration and Naturalization Service, DOJ, including as an assistant district counsel and senior litigation counsel. From 1996 through 1998, he also served as a special assistant U.S. attorney for the U.S. Attorney's Office, Southern District of Florida, DOJ. From 2008 through 2010, he served as an adjunct professor on the faculty of the Miami-Dade College Law Center. Judge Sogocio is a member of the Florida and Pennsylvania Bars.

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 Miami

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.