# Douglas Donaldson Nelson

Immigration Judge · [Salt Lake City Immigration Court](/kyj/court/ut/salt-lake-city-immigration-court)

## Douglas Donaldson Nelson at a glance

Current role

Immigration Judge

Court

[Salt Lake City Immigration Court](/kyj/court/ut/salt-lake-city-immigration-court)

Jurisdiction

Utah · Federal

Historical EOIR data

## Outcomes at a glance

Total outcomes

2,231

Relief granted

305 13.7%

Denied / removal ordered

1,299 58.2%

Other / procedural

627 28.1%

National comparison for this selection: 9,249,024 outcomes; 10.0% relief granted; 52.0% denied / removal ordered; 38.0% other / procedural.

Methodology and sources

These are proceeding outcomes, not asylum application statistics. Completion years use EOIR COMP_DATE; 2026 contains partial-year data. Relief granted, denied / removal ordered and other / procedural exhaust the recorded outcomes. Groups of one are included. Historical outcomes do not establish a current assignment. Counts describe recorded cases and do not predict an individual's result.

[Official EOIR case data](https://fileshare.eoir.justice.gov/EOIR%20Case%20Data.zip) · Source date: Tue, 01 Sep 2026 14:14:27 GMT

## Biography

### Professional career

- Judge Douglas D. Nelson is an immigration judge appointed in August 2023 to the West Valley Immigration Court in Utah, with a background as a decades‐long immigration attorney in private practice
- From 1995 to 2023, he practiced immigration law in private practice for Alejandro O. Campillo APLC and the Law Office of Douglas D. Nelson
- Judicial law clerk at the San Diego Immigration Court (1994–1995) via the Attorney General’s Honors Program

### Education

- University of San Diego School of Law — J.D. (1994)
- Brigham Young University — B.A. (1991)

### Additional information

- FY 2021–2026 (first 9 months): 572 asylum decisions on the merits — 273 granted asylum, 19 other relief, 280 denied.
- Liaison between the San Diego chapter of the American Immigration Lawyers Association and federal immigration agencies (1996–2021)
- Chair of the Immigration Section, San Diego County Bar (2002–2004)
- 94% of respondents represented by counsel (national average 81%)
- He is a member of the State Bar of California.

## Sources

Identity source checked October 6, 2026 .

### DOJ EOIR current immigration judge directory

Identity source · HTML · Source checked October 6, 2026

[Public Records & Data Use](/public-records-data-use) · [Corrections policy](/corrections)

## Courtroom rules

[Official EOIR hearing and filing instructions](https://www.justice.gov/eoir/policy-manual-eoir)