Perry Rhew, Chief Administrative Appeals Office

Background Experience/Significant Achievements:

As the USCIS Chief of the Administrative Appeals Office, Perry Rhew is responsible for overseeing the adjudication of appeals in connection with applications and petitions seeking benefits under the Immigration and Nationality Laws of the United States.

Immediately prior to his appointment Mr. Rhew served for four years as the first Chief Administrative Law Judge of and head of a new federal adjudicative agency within the Department of Health and Human Services, the Office of Medicare Hearings and Appeals. As Chief ALJ he oversaw the agency’s hiring and training of over 570 employees, including ALJs, attorneys, paralegals, legal assistants, docket clerks and administrative staff members, and the opening of four adjudicative bodies around the country in Cleveland, Irvine, Miami, and Arlington. Mr. Rhew was instrumental in the creation of the new agency and in developing the policies and guidance that resulted in a reduction of average processing time for administrative appeals from an average of almost 300 days to under 90 days. He worked closely with other entities to open the lines of communication between those responsible for the various stages in the appellate process, seeking ways to streamline appeals procedures and reduce overall case processing times. He also served on the Secretary’s Pandemic Preparedness Council, spoke frequently at public forums, and oversaw the budget planning and staffing models for the agency.

Mr. Rhew served for twelve years in elected office in Missouri, first as a prosecuting attorney and then as a state trial court judge. In that capacity he heard criminal cases, ranging from misdemeanor offenses to capital murder, and civil litigation from uncontested divorce cases to complex civil litigation. He resigned from public office to accept an appointment as a United States Administrative Law Judge for the Social Security Administration in Cleveland in 1997.

Education:

Mr. Rhew obtained a B.S. in Psychology from Southeast Missouri State University and his J.D. from the University of Missouri – Kansas City.