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

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

Immigration judges

Zol Rainey

Immigration Judge, Charlotte Immigration Court. Appointed December 2021.

Asylum record, FY 2021-2026

TRAC source →
Judge Rainey90.0%
Charlotte court86.7%
All judges nationally62.9%
Decisions on the merits
438
Asylum granted
38
Other relief granted
6
Denied
394
Against own court
+3.3 pts
Denial rate by fiscal year
FY24FY25FY26
79%94%94%

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

Docket

Respondents represented by counsel: 90% (nationally, 81% are represented).

Most common nationalities: Honduras (30.8%), Mexico (14.6%), Guatemala (13.7%), El Salvador (9.8%), Venezuela (9.8%).

Official biography

Zol D. Rainey was appointed as a Unit Chief Immigration Judge to begin supervisory immigration court duties and hearing cases in December 2021. Judge Rainey ear ned a Bachelor of Science in 1992 from Old Dominion University, a Juris Doctor in 2000 from The John Marshall Law School, and a Master of Laws in 2005 from The George Washington University Law School. From 2012 to 2021, he served as a Senior Litigation Counsel and Enforcement Attorney, Office of Enforcement, Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, in the District of Columbia. From 2011 to 2012, he served as an Acting Chief and Deputy Chief, Executive Communications Unit, Office of the Principal Legal Advisor (OPLA), Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), Department of Homeland Security (DHS), in the District of Columbia. From 2009 to 2011, he served as an Assistant Chief Counsel, Office of Chief Counsel, OPLA, ICE, DHS, in Arlington, Virginia. From 2005 to 2009, he served as an Assistant Criminal Section Chief and Assistant Attorney General, Office of the Attorney General for the District of Columbia. From 2000 to 2005, he served as a Judge Advocate for the U.S. Navy, in the following locations: Washington Navy Yard, District of Columbia; the Pentagon; U.S. Naval Academy, Annapolis, Maryland; and Norfolk, Virginia. Judge Rainey is a member of the District of Columbia Bar, Illinois State Bar, and Virginia 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 Charlotte

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.