“Justice by Geography:” Legal Violence and Asylum in the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals

Abstract

The US immigration court system is complex. Unlike other federal courts, immigration courts are overly influenced by their locality. This paper focuses on geographic disparity in immigration court asylum outcomes across the United States by highlighting the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals. We utilize national immigration court outcome data to highlight factors that contribute to successful asylum grants. We compare immigration case outcomes across the United States utilizing US Circuit Court of Appeals jurisdictions, which influence case outcomes through case precedent. Asylum cases within the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals are granted at half the rate of the US average. Using institutional ethnography, textual analysis of case precedents set within this jurisdiction, and Immigration Court outcome data, we highlight why immigration courts within the 5th Circuit have the lowest grant rates as compared to their counterparts throughout the US. This evidence supports the assertion that national-level agency changes are necessary for the even adjudication of asylum, regardless of the petitioner’s geographic location.