According to The Washington Post, things are busy in U.S. immigration courthouses. A recent article describes one calm and collected judge with 26 deportation cases to decide before lunch. In the chaotic scene painted in this article, interpreters explain the judge's words to non-English speaking court attendees while court officials fret about breaking fire code in the crowded court room. Within this room of polished mahogany and deep reds and blues, families await their court-appointment to learn whether or not they can remain in the United States. This is a defining moment in their lives, but for the judge with an over-packed schedule, each family can be just another job.

Lawyers say that this is called the "rocket docket" and is an increasingly common situation in immigration courthouses. For immigrants without attorneys there to represent them, their case may be tried and decided in a matter of minutes. Even those with attorneys will be kept to a very strict time limit. Current reports show that there are approximately 11.7 million immigrants in the United States at present and around 50,000 more trying to enter the U.S. every single month. There are about 21,000 agents patrolling the borders and the government is spending approximately $18 billion on enforcement. About 1,000 people are being deported from America each and every day.

Judges all across America say that in order to get through their booked schedules on time, they can only devote about six to seven minutes per immigration case that they face. There are 57 immigration courts across the country, and all of them admit that they are overwhelmed. In order to help reduce the costs of transportation for detained immigrants, many immigration courts are turning to digital communications. Many immigrants are now asked to "Skype in" from their detention centers.

During these Skype-in sessions, attorneys will typically show up at the court while the defendant remains on the video screen. It is essential to have a skilled immigration attorney on your side if you are at-risk to deportation, especially if you will not be physically present in the courthouse yourself. Oftentimes an immigration attorney can argue for your best interests in your case, despite the possibility that you have made mistakes that could lead to your deportation. Many of the detainees in detention centers across the nation have been arrested after committing a misdemeanor crime, such as a DUI or reckless driving. As a result, they are placed in detention centers where they await their court trial.

When they finally make it to their court date, an overwhelmed immigration judge has approximately seven minutes to decide their penalty. One judge tells The Washington Post that he has to head about 1,500 cases per year while federal judges only decide about 440. Immigration judges are required to make shockingly weighty decisions about the lives of families with only a few minutes of deliberation. A group of psychiatrists surveyed immigration judges about their work back in 2008 and determined that the job was impossible stressful with a burnout rate exceeding those of prison guards. The law has become more complex, and a hiring freeze has even reduced the amount of immigration judges in the U.S.

As the court system becomes overburdened and judges face difficult decisions about every ten minutes, the need for an aggressive and hardworking lawyer is more prevalent than ever. If you have been arrested for immigration offenses or if you are facing deportation, beat the rocket docket with the help of a skilled immigration attorney. Use this directory to locate a skilled lawyer near you!