Judge Mimi Yam

United States Immigration Court

Anyone who knows Judge Mimi Yam understands that she is one of those rare persons who is a deep well of kindness and goodwill. Judge Yam is one of those individuals who instinctively taps a natural reservoir of positive energy and radiates that energy to all who come in contact with her.  If this natural ability to positively impact the lives of others can be characterized as influential, Judge Yam is truly worthy of being called “influential.”

At age 16, Judge Yam traveled unaccompanied from Hong Kong to the United States to enroll as a freshman in college. Judge Yam didn’t slow down long enough to consider that other people might think that she did not belong. Everywhere she goes, she carries a respectful attitude, a laugh-out-loud sense of humor and a glow of goodwill toward every human being. This positive attitude soon endeared Judge Yam to a growing circle of friends as well as the fact that, as Judge Yam sometimes declares in jest, “I’m pretty smart for a girl.”

When Judge Yam returned to Hong Kong with a degree in special education from Vanderbilt University, she was appointed principal of a school for special needs children and became the youngest female principal in Hong Kong. She introduced a program that had never before been considered in a conservative culture: sex education.  Recognizing that these children comprised a vulnerable class, Judge Yam acted with steadfast resolve to protect and teach these children what they needed to know in the face of determined institutional and personal opposition.

By the time Judge Yam graduated from the Law School at Tulane University, she had mastered the English language well enough to study law and pass the bar exam.  “Being pretty smart for a girl,” hard work, and a desire to help others has carried her through.

Judge Yam accepted the position of Federal Immigration Judge as the first Chinese-speaking Immigration Judge in the United States because it would allow time to be a mommy to her children, Lexi and Michael.

As an Immigration Judge, Judge Yam issued a landmark decision that allows for a compassionate result. She granted asylum to an abused woman in the Matter of R—A—which led to an expanded legal interpretation that permits asylum for a woman who had suffered or faces domestic violence on account of her membership in a particular social group.

Judge Mimi Yam, a loving mother, a devoted daughter, a trusted sister, a courageous Judge, and a lovely woman has shared and continues to share the most precious gift that she can give to her community: her love for others and belief in the American Dream.