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Mandamus decisions / District of South Carolina

Merida v. Director of United States Citizenship and Immigration Services

District of South CarolinaJoseph Dawson IIIDecided July 2, 2026No. 4:25-cv-05420

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2,914 written decisions from 2,661 cases in the whole mandamus and agency-delay group, the group's newest decided October 30, 2026. Updated November 3, 2026 at 1:24 a.m. CT; the Passim connector counts the live collection, which can differ by the day's additions and retirements (which total to quote). Coverage: of the 1,606 public decisions since January 1, 2025 that a CourtListener and GovInfo search for mandamus and agency delay finds, Passim holds 1,371 (85%), measured November 3, 2026. Some of what that search finds are not mandamus decisions. Tell us about a decision we're missing.

These are counts of past written decisions and dockets, not predictions of how any case will be decided. A distribution appears only when at least 5 decisions (or 5 dockets) are behind it; smaller groups are listed, not summarized. How it's counted.

What the decision decided

Each value cites the passage it was read from. Values read by a model were checked against that passage; values read by rule come from fixed text patterns. Read the decision before relying on either.

Agency USCIS Read by a model
USCIS accepted the applications and assigned receipt numbers for both Alva Merida and Cruz Estudillo.
Form or filing I-918 (U visa); I-918A Read by a model
On December 20, 2024, Alva Merida filed a Form I-918, Petition for U Nonimmigrant Status, together with a signed personal statement and a timely signed Form I-918 Supplement B law-enforcement certification.
What the suit asked for Decide the application Read by a model
Count I alleges that USCIS has unreasonably delayed making a bona fide determination (“BFD”) on Alva Merida’s Uvisa petition.
Kind of order A ruling on a motion or the petition Read by a model
For the reasons set forth above, Defendant’s Motion to Dismiss (DE 28) is GRANTED IN PART and DENIED IN PART.
Motion decided Motion to dismiss for lack of jurisdiction; Motion to dismiss for failure to state a claim Read by a model
USCIS moves to dismiss under Rule 12(b)(1), Fed. R. Civ. P., for lack of subject-matter jurisdiction and under Rule 12(b)(6), Fed. R. Civ. P., for failure to state a claim.
Whose motion The government's motion Read by a model
This immigration matter is before the Court on Defendant Director of United States Citizenship and Immigration Services’ (“USCIS”) Motion to Dismiss the Amended Complaint.
Disposition Dismissed in part; some claims go on The government's motion to dismiss was granted in part: some claims were dismissed and others go on. Read by a model
Having reviewed the Amended Complaint, the parties’ briefing, and the applicable law, the Court grants USCIS’s motion as to Count I and denies the motion as to Counts II and III.
Prevailing party Each side in part Read by a model
Having reviewed the Amended Complaint, the parties’ briefing, and the applicable law, the Court grants USCIS’s motion as to Count I and denies the motion as to Counts II and III.
The delay claim The delay claim goes on Read by a model
Having reviewed the Amended Complaint, the parties’ briefing, and the applicable law, the Court grants USCIS’s motion as to Count I and denies the motion as to Counts II and III.
Months pending 5.7 months from the application to the suit; 18.4 months from the application to the court's decision Read by a model
On December 20, 2024, Alva Merida filed a Form I-918, Petition for U Nonimmigrant Status, together with a signed personal statement and a timely signed Form I-918 Supplement B law-enforcement certification.
TRAC factors The court did not weigh the TRAC factors Read by a model
Threshold rulings None Read by a model
U visa claims Bona fide determination: dismissed; Waiting list: goes on Read by a model
Because Plaintiffs have not identified a nondiscretionary duty requiring USCIS to make a BFD, Count I cannot proceed.
Nationality Guatemala Read by a model
Plaintiff Alva Merida and her husband, co-Plaintiff Cruz Estudillo, are citizens and nationals of Guatemala who reside in Conway, South Carolina.

Other orders in this case

The group holds 3 decisions from this suit, oldest first. Outcome counts on these pages count the case once, by its latest decision, this one. How decisions are grouped into cases.

DecisionDecidedJudgeDisposition
Merida v. Director of United States Citizenship and Immigration Services June 17, 2025 Joseph Dawson III Magistrate judge's recommendation
Merida v. Director of United States Citizenship and Immigration Services December 2, 2025 Joseph Dawson III Procedural order
Merida v. Director of United States Citizenship and Immigration ServicesThis decisionThe case's latest decision: its outcome is the one counted July 2, 2026 Joseph Dawson III Dismissed in part; some claims go on

How the case ended

Docket
No. 4:25-cv-05420
Filed
June 12, 2025
Ended
August 21, 2026
Suit's filing to its end
435 days
How it ended
Ended, outcome not recorded
From the record
terminated; no disposition recorded

A voluntary or stipulated dismissal is how most suits end once the agency acts; the docket rarely says why. Other suits in this court.

Supreme Court and Fourth Circuit authority

District decisions bind no one. On the questions this decision raises, the Supreme Court decisions and the circuit's published decisions listed here bind this court; a circuit disposition marked nonprecedential was not published as precedent and is persuasive only. ImmCite status as read November 3, 2026. Check the current status before relying on one.