Passim

Mandamus decisions / District of Columbia

VARGHESE v. BLINKEN

District of ColumbiaChristopher R. CooperDecided July 29, 2022No. 1:21-cv-02597

Read the decisionOriginal on CourtListener

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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 Department of State Read by a model
Plaintiff Jijo Varghese, a lawful permanent resident of the United States, seeks to compel the Department of State to adjudicate his wife’s U.S. visa application.
Form or filing DS-260 (immigrant visa) Read by a model
And globally, as of July 2022, the number of eligible immigrant visa applicants whose cases are documentarily complete at the NVC but are still waiting for an interview—like George—totaled 409,645.
What the suit asked for Decide the application Read by a model
Varghese asks the Court to compel the government to adjudicate his wife’s visa application under either Act.
Kind of order A ruling on a motion or the petition Read by a model
For the foregoing reasons, the Court will grant the government’s motion to dismiss and deny the plaintiff’s motion for summary judgment.
Motion decided Motion to dismiss for lack of jurisdiction; Motion to dismiss for failure to state a claim; Summary judgment Read by a model
The government moved to dismiss this suit for lack of subject matter jurisdiction and failure to state a claim. Varghese opposed dismissal and moved for summary judgment on his claims.
Whose motion Cross-motions Read by a model
For the foregoing reasons, the Court will grant the government’s motion to dismiss and deny the plaintiff’s motion for summary judgment.
Disposition Dismissed The case or every delay claim was dismissed for a reason other than mootness. Read by a model
For the foregoing reasons, the Court will grant the government’s motion to dismiss and deny the plaintiff’s motion for summary judgment.
Prevailing party Government Read by a model
For the foregoing reasons, the Court will grant the government’s motion to dismiss and deny the plaintiff’s motion for summary judgment.
The delay claim Dismissed Read by a model
Because Varghese has not plausibly alleged that the delay of his wife’s visa application is unreasonable, the Court will grant the government’s motion to dismiss the case and deny Varghese’s summary judgment motion.
Months pending 48.5 months from the application to the court's decision Read by a model
In July 2018, Varghese filed a visa petition on George’s behalf.
TRAC factors The court weighed the TRAC factors
  • 1. Rule of reasonfavors the government
  • 2. Congressional timetablefavors the government
  • 3. Human health and welfarefavors the applicant
  • 4. Competing prioritiesfavors the government
  • 5. Interests prejudicedfavors the applicant
  • 6. No impropriety neededneutral
Read by a model
Considering all the relevant circumstances and facts presented by both sides, the Court finds the first two factors collectively tip in favor of the government.
The government's delay arguments First-in, first-out processing accepted; Line-jumping accepted Read by a model
“First-in, first-out” is enough to establish a queue.
Threshold rulings None Read by a model
I-130 category Family preference Read by a model
Plaintiff Jijo Varghese, a lawful permanent resident of the United States, seeks to compel the Department of State to adjudicate his wife’s U.S. visa application.

How the case ended

Docket
No. 1:21-cv-02597
Filed
October 5, 2021
Ended
July 29, 2022
Suit's filing to its end
297 days
How it ended
Dismissed on jurisdiction or the merits
From the record
idb disp 6 (judgment: motion before trial), judgment for defendant

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 D.C. 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.