Category: Judge Ayodele Gansallo

Claudia R. Cubas, Immigration Judge, Hyattsville Immigration Court

Claudia R. Cubas was appointed as an Immigration Judge to begin hearing cases in March 2022. Judge Cubas earned a Bachelor of Arts in 2005 from the University of St. Thomas, in Houston, and a Juris Doctor in 2008 from the University of Maryland Francis King Carey School of Law. From 2018 to 2022, she was the Litigation Director at the Capital Area Immigrants’ Rights (CAIR) Coalition in the District of Columbia. She held the following roles at the CAIR Coalition: from 2016 to 2018, Senior Program Director; from 2014 to 2016, Program Director; from 2013 to 2014, Supervising Attorney for the Legal Orientation Program; and from 2011 to 2012, Staff Attorney. From 2009 to 2011, she was an Equal Justice Works AmeriCorps Legal Fellow at the Central American Resource Center, in the District of Columbia. From 2008 to 2009, she was an Attorney in private practice. Judge Cubas is a member of the Maryland State Bar.

Ayodele A. Gansallo, Immigration Judge, Hyattsville Immigration Court

Ayodele A. Gansallo was appointed as an Immigration Judge to begin hearing cases in March 2022. Judge Gansallo earned a Bachelor of Laws in 1985 from Leicester University, England. From 1985 to 1986, she attended the Guildford College of Law, and completed the program for Solicitors. She earned a Master of Laws from Temple University Beasley School of Law in 1998. From 2021 to 2022, she was the Co-Director of Legal Services with the Hebrew Immigrant Aid Society of Pennsylvania (HIAS PA), in Philadelphia. From 1998 to 2020, she was the Senior Staff Attorney with HIAS PA. From 1994 to 1997, she was the Legal Director and Policy Coordinator with The Joint Council for the Welfare of Immigrants in London. From 1992 to 1994, she was the Solicitor with the Greater Manchester Immigration Aid Unit in Manchester, England. From 1988 to 1989, she was a Solicitor with Michael Freeman and Co, in London. From 1987 to 1988, she was a trainee Solicitor with the London Borough of Islington, in London. Judge Gansallo is a member of the New York State Bar.

Kyle A. Dandelet, Immigration Judge, New York – Federal Plaza Immigration Court

Kyle A. Dandelet was appointed as an Immigration Judge to begin hearing cases in March 2022. Judge Dandelet earned a Bachelor of Arts in 2004 from Georgetown University and a Juris Doctor in 2010 from Harvard Law School. From 2017 to 2022, he was the Pro Bono Immigration Attorney at Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton LLP (Cleary Gottlieb) in New York. From 2015 to 2017, he was a Senior Staff Attorney in Sanctuary for Families’ Immigration Intervention Project at the New York City Family Justice Center in the Bronx, New York. From 2010 to 2012, and from 2013 to 2015, he was a Litigation Associate with Cleary Gottlieb. From 2012 to 2013, he clerked for the Honorable Naomi Reice Buchwald of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York. Judge Dandelet is a member of the New York State Bar.

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Here are the bios of the full list of 25 new appointees! https://www.justice.gov/eoir/page/file/1487036/download

Notably, and in marked contrast to earlier selections, particularly under Trump, all the new judges appear to have prior immigration and/or judicial experience. Significantly, 20 appear to have prior experience representing individuals in Immigration Court and a number have immigration experience with both the private sector and DHS. Some have notable pro bono, human rights, or civil rights credentials. Fittingly for “Women’s History Month” and for the composition of the upcoming generation of new attorneys (55% of law students are now women), 17 of the new judges are women.

Obviously, with more than 600 Immigration Judges nationwide, 25 new judges, no matter how well-qualified, can’t solve all the problems of a failing, unfair, and badly “out of whack” system in the near future. But, every improvement in the delivery of justice on the trial level saves lives, inspires others, reduces unnecessary appeals and remands, and puts pressure on the BIA to pay attention to detail and stop just “regurgitating the discredited Sessions/Barr/DHS party line.” Although one perhaps wouldn’t know it from reading BIA decisions, the “legal times” are changing, even if the BIA often appears tied to the least happy aspects of the past.

I have known and admired the work of Judge Claudia Cubas for years. She appeared before me at the Arlington Immigration Court, helped keep our pro bono program humming along, and was a charismatic and inspirational role model for JLCs, interns, law students, and a new generation of due-process-oriented lawyers in the DMV metro area and beyond.

Judge Ayo Gansallo is another amazing legal scholar-advocate. We worked together with Professor Michele Pistone of Villanova on the VIISTA Villanova program for training more non-attorney representatives to assist asylum seekers. It was there that I was introduced to Understanding Immigration Law & Practice, the amazing textbook that she co-authored with Judith Bernstein-Baker. It jumped out at me as just the “practically oriented” book I was looking for! It has now become a staple of my Immigration Law & Policy class at Georgetown Law. The students love the “practical approach” with lots of real life examples and problems that we can work on in groups during class. 

While I don’t personally know Judge Dandelet, he is a “personal hero” of my friend, Round Table colleague, and fellow blogger Judge “Sir Jeffrey” Chase!  That really tells me all I need to know about why he will be an intellectual leader and a “game changer” on the bench.

There appear to be many other fine, well-qualified judges on this list that I haven’t personally encountered on my trip through the world of immigration. But, I do look forward to becoming familiar with their work through the extensive feedback I get from members of the NDPA throughout America. 

Congrats to all the new judges! Thanks for taking on the challenge. Insist on equal justice for all, respect for everyone (including attorneys) coming before the court, and timely scholarly excellence that focuses on correct results — tune out all the other BS that all too often infects EOIR and interferes with great judging. And, of course, most important: “Due Process Forever!” It’s the “name of the game” — the ONLY game in town!

PWS

03-26-22