According to recent government data, there are now 3 million pending cases in immigration courts around the U.S. The backlog has tripled since 2019, growing by more than one million cases in the last year alone. The uptick in cases is largely driven by unprecedented surges in the number of migrants seeking asylum after being apprehended for crossing the border illegally. Immigration attorneys and advocates say the case backlog and subsequent long wait times for court dates are damaging to an already strained asylum system.
