Mandamus decisions / District of Columbia

Stetsiuk v. Mesquita

District of ColumbiaChristopher R. CooperDecided February 5, 2025No. 1:24-cv-00062

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What the decision decided

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Agency Department of State Read by a model
One month later, in May 2023, a consular officer at the U.S. Embassy in Austria interviewed Stetsiuk in connection with his visa application.
Form or filing 221(g) (consular refusal); DS-160 (nonimmigrant visa) Read by a model
In April 2023, Stetsiuk filed an F-1 visa application.
What the suit asked for Finish 221(g) processing Read by a model
Rather, he contends that the agency has unreasonably delayed its completion of administrative processing.
Kind of order A ruling on a motion or the petition Read by a model
For these reasons, the Court will dismiss the complaint and the case in a separate order that accompanies this Memorandum Opinion.
Motion decided Motion to dismiss for lack of jurisdiction; Motion to dismiss for failure to state a claim Read by a model
The government has moved to dismiss the complaint for lack of subject matter jurisdiction under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 12(b)(1) and failure to state a claim under Rule 12(b)(6).
Whose motion The government's motion Read by a model
The government has moved to dismiss the complaint for lack of subject matter jurisdiction and failure to state a claim.
Disposition Dismissed The case or every delay claim was dismissed for a reason other than mootness. Read by a model
For these reasons, the Court will dismiss the complaint and the case in a separate order that accompanies this Memorandum Opinion.
Prevailing party Government Read by a model
Because Stetsiuk has not plausibly alleged an unreasonable delay in adjudicating his visa application, the Court will grant the government’s motion and dismiss the complaint.
The delay claim Dismissed Read by a model
Because Stetsiuk has not plausibly alleged an unreasonable delay in adjudicating his visa application, the Court will grant the government’s motion and dismiss the complaint.
Months pending 9 months from the application to the suit; 21.7 months from the application to the court's decision Read by a model
In April 2023, Stetsiuk filed an F-1 visa application.
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
Factors one, two, and four favor the defendants, factor six is neutral, and although factors three and five weigh slightly in Stetsiuk’s direction, the other factors outweigh them.
The government's delay arguments Line-jumping accepted Read by a model
he cannot escape the reality that “[c]onsular processing capacity is presently a zero-sum game, so granting [Stetsiuk] relief would necessarily mean additional delays for other applicants—many of whom undoubtedly face hardships of their own.”
Threshold rulings Consular nonreviewability rejected Read by a model
In this context, consular nonreviewability has no application and does not bar the Court’s review.
Nationality Ukraine Read by a model
Plaintiff Mykhailo Stetsiuk is a citizen of Ukraine awaiting a decision on his F1 student visa application.

How the case ended

Docket
No. 1:24-cv-00062
Filed
January 8, 2024
Ended
February 5, 2025
Suit's filing to its end
394 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.