Annandale Immigration Court: Judge Changes and Your Case

A former judge’s account of pressure over bond rulings leaves practical questions for people with cases in Annandale: who hears them now, what happens to past rulings and which deadlines apply.

Karen Donoso Stevens, a former judge at the Annandale Immigration Court in Northern Virginia, has said Justice Department supervisors pressed her over bond rulings, took her off the detained docket and later fired her. Her account, reported by The Washington Post and covered in our earlier analysis of immigration judge independence, has not been answered in detail by the Justice Department. EOIR has referred to the claims as those of a disgruntled former employee.

Whatever comes of her claims, the people most directly affected are respondents whose cases sit on the Annandale dockets. Here is what the rules say about a change of judge, bond, hearings and deadlines.

What the account says happened

September 2025: In September 2025, the Board of Immigration Appeals ruled that people who entered without inspection generally cannot get bond. She nonetheless granted bond to four adults who had first arrived as unaccompanied minors, a group she apparently viewed as outside that ruling. She says an acting assistant chief judge told her higher-ups wanted her to vacate those rulings on her own motion, and she did.
November 2025: The official who leads the immigration courts asked her to justify six bond grants, according to the report. Federal courts had ordered those bond hearings.
January 14, 2026: She was removed from the detained docket mid-hearing and moved to non-detained asylum cases. Judge Richard VanVeldhuisen took over her detained docket.
May 21, 2026: She received a termination notice citing Article II of the Constitution. She has appealed.

EOIR’s own policy, PM 25-42, says no EOIR employee may direct an adjudicator to rule a particular way in the first instance. It also says “statistically improbable outcome metrics” can justify a closer look at a judge’s work.

If your judge is replaced, does your case start over?

No. Under 8 C.F.R. 1240.1(b), when a judge becomes unavailable, another immigration judge may be assigned to complete the case. The new judge must become familiar with the record and say on the record that he or she has done so. Evidence, testimony and filings already in the record stay there.

Earlier rulings also remain in effect unless they are changed through a recognized procedure. An immigration judge may reopen or reconsider a case on the judge’s own motion at any time, unless the case is before the Board, under 8 C.F.R. 1003.23(b)(1). That is the mechanism the former judge says she was pressed to use. A successor judge can also revisit interlocutory issues, such as scheduling or a pending motion, so it is worth confirming the status of anything left open.

Where bond stands for Annandale detainees

The Board’s position: Matter of Yajure Hurtado, 29 I&N Dec. 216 (BIA 2025), holds that immigration judges cannot hear bond requests from people who entered without inspection, treating them as applicants for admission under mandatory detention.
The Fourth Circuit’s position: In Lopez Garcia v. Guadian, decided Sept. 10, 2026, the court covering Virginia rejected that no-bond reading for people arrested in the interior, according to case trackers. Many detainees have reached a bond hearing only after a federal habeas order.
The Supreme Court: On Oct. 1, 2026, the Court agreed to decide the question in a case from the Second Circuit involving Ricardo Aparecido Barbosa da Cunha. Until it rules, outcomes depend on the circuit, and the Fifth Circuit has taken the opposite view, as we reported on its full-court ruling.
Paying a bond: A bond set by an immigration judge is posted with ICE, which uses its online CeBONDS system. It is not paid to the immigration court.

How to check a hearing, appear by video or pay a court fee

Case status: EOIR’s Automated Case Information system at portal.eoir.justice.gov, or 1-800-898-7180, shows the next hearing. EOIR says the hearing notice is the official source, and a new date does not appear until the court sets one.
Court contacts: The Annandale court is at 7619 Little River Turnpike, Suite 400, Annandale, VA 22003, phone 703-343-4000, with public hours of 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. on weekdays. Its EOIR page lists the sitting judges and links to internet-based hearing access information.
Video (Webex) hearings: The court decides whether a hearing is in person or by video. EOIR canceled its 2022 guidance encouraging judges to grant remote-appearance requests in March 2025, so a request to appear by video is left to the court’s discretion. Read the notice closely and file any request well in advance.
Court fees: Filing fees for applications, motions and Board appeals, including the annual asylum fee, go through the EOIR Payment Portal, and the receipt is filed as proof of payment. Our guide to the EOIR Payment Portal walks through the steps.

Deadlines if a ruling looks wrong

Appeal to the Board: Generally 30 calendar days from the judge’s decision, and the Board must receive the appeal by then. A February 2026 interim final rule tried to cut this to 10 days for most cases, but a federal court vacated that provision on March 8, 2026, and EOIR confirmed the 30-day deadline in Policy Memorandum 26-02.
Motion to reconsider: Generally due within 30 days of a final order.
Motion to reopen: Generally due within 90 days of a final order.
Conduct complaint: EOIR’s Judicial Conduct and Professionalism Unit (Judicial.Conduct@usdoj.gov) takes complaints about how a judge behaved. EOIR says a complaint is not an appeal and does not change the outcome of a case.

For people whose bond rulings were reversed in 2025, the practical question is whether the record shows why. A reversal on the judge’s own motion should appear in a written order. If a lawyer can tie it to an outside instruction, the likely routes are a motion to reopen or reconsider, or a due process claim in federal habeas court. Those are case-by-case arguments, and the time limits above still apply.

Quick answers

My Annandale judge changed. Do I need to refile everything? No. The record carries over, and the new judge must review it and say so on the record.

Is my hearing still on? Check your written hearing notice first, then the EOIR case portal or 1-800-898-7180.

Can I attend my Annandale hearing on Webex? Only if the court schedules or allows it. File a written request well ahead of the date.

Is the EOIR Payment Portal used for immigration bond? No. It handles court filing fees. Bonds are posted with ICE.

Can a detained person in Virginia get a bond hearing? The Fourth Circuit has rejected the no-bond reading for many people arrested inside the country, but the Supreme Court will now decide the issue.

How long do I have to appeal a judge’s decision? Generally 30 calendar days. A 2026 rule that would have shortened it to 10 days was struck down in court.

This article is for general information and is not legal advice.

Sources

Vasanth Vaidyanathan, Esq.

Administrator

Vasanth Vaidyanathan is an immigration attorney with over 20 years of experience focused exclusively on U.S. immigration and nationality law. He holds a LL.M. from California Western School of Law, San Deigo and advises individuals and businesses on employment and family-based immigration matters, including H-1B, PERM, EB categories, and adjustment of status. He has also been a featured speaker at immigration seminars across the U.S. To reach Vasanth visit: https://www.vnathan.com/

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