There is a backlog of about 350,000 cases at the moment. Judges are under considerable pressure and many immigrants with legitimate claims spend years not knowing what will happen to them. Although only 5 per cent of judges tend to retire each year, Judge Dana Leigh Marks, president of the National Association of Immigration Judges, predicts a higher rate in 2014. She said: 'We are the forgotten stepchild. When Congress wants to fund immigration enforcement, they forget about the court.' Source: The Commercial Appeal