In this court, you are guilty until proven innocent. Discrimination based on national origin is routine, even expected. And naming your children Nikita and Sasha just might sink your case.

It’s the Defense Office of Hearings and Appeals, the administrative forum where employees of defense contractors go to protest when their security clearances are denied or revoked. In the past 10 years, the court has seen a staggering 25-fold increase in its docket, from 62 cases in 2000 to 1,516 last year.