What is Judge Margaret Kolbe's background?
TRAC reports that Margaret Kolbe was appointed in January 2016. Judge Kolbe received a Bachelor of Arts degree in 1987 from the University of Cincinnati, a Master of Arts degree in 1989 from the University of Cincinnati, and a Juris Doctor in 1996 from the Notre Dame Law School. From 2002 through 2015, Judge Kolbe served as assistant U.S. attorney in the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of New York, in Brooklyn, N.Y. From 1996 through 2002, Judge Kolbe served as an attorney advisor for the Board of Immigration Appeals, Executive Office for Immigration Review, U.S. Department of Justice, in Falls Church, Va., and from 1991 through 1993, as a Peace Corps volunteer in Gabon, Africa.
What does TRAC report about Judge Margaret Kolbe's asylum decisions?
TRAC, a research center that began at Syracuse University, reports that for FY 2021 - 2026 (data covers the first 9 months of fiscal year 2026), Judge Margaret Kolbe decided 671 asylum cases at New York - Det Immigration Court and denied 38.7 percent, based on its report of Aug 27, 2026. These are past figures for one court. They do not predict your case, which turns on your facts, evidence, nationality and representation, and TRAC cautions against simple comparisons between judges at different courts. Read the full report at TRAC, and talk to a lawyer about your own case.
What the official record establishes
The source lists the name Margaret Kolbe in 1 alphabetical row. The recorded title is Immigration Judge. The record is not an appointment history or an employment certification.
Dated court associations
EOIR’s court-specific tables associate this entry with New York - Varick Immigration Court. The relationship is recorded as listed 2026-10-20; it may include supervisory coverage rather than a merits-hearing assignment.