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

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

Immigration judges

Vivienne E. Gordon-Uruakpa

Immigration Judge, New York/Federal Plaza Immigration Court. Appointed June 2002.

Asylum record, FY 2021-2026

TRAC source →
Judge Gordon-Uruakpa1.6%
New York court47.7%
All judges nationally62.9%
Decisions on the merits
675
Asylum granted
605
Other relief granted
59
Denied
11
Against own court
-46.1 pts
Denial rate by fiscal year
FY21FY22FY24FY25
5%3%2%1%

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

Docket

Respondents represented by counsel: 96% (nationally, 81% are represented).

Most common nationalities: China (38.9%), India (12.9%), Bangladesh (8%), Russia (4.9%), Nepal (4.3%).

Official biography

Judge Gordon-Uruakpa was appointed as an Immigration Judge in June 2002. She received an undergraduate degree from Fordham University in 1980 and a Juris Doctorate from Howard School of Law in 1984. Judge Gordon-Uruakpa served as an assistant district counsel with the former Immigration and Naturalization Service in New York from 1996 to June 2002. From 1987 to 1996, she served as a staff attorney and supervisor with the Legal Aid Society, criminal defense division, also in New York. Judge Gordon-Uruakpa worked as a staff attorney/Reginald Heber Smith Fellow with the Legal Services Corporation, Chemung County Neighborhood Legal Services in Elmira, New York, from 1984 to 1986. She is a member of the New York 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

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.