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Mandamus decisions / District of Columbia

Akter v. Flook

District of ColumbiaChristopher R. CooperDecided February 28, 2025

Read the decisionOriginal on CourtListener

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What the decision decided

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Agency Department of State Read by a model
In January 2024, Akter sued the U.S. Consul General in Bangladesh under the Mandamus Act and the Administrative Procedure Act (“APA”), seeking an order from this Court directing the embassy to adjudicate her application.
Form or filing DS-260 (immigrant visa) Read by a model
In July 2020, Fatema Akter, a Bangladeshi citizen, applied for an immigrant visa to enter the United States.
What the suit asked for Decide the application Read by a model
In January 2024, Akter sued the U.S. Consul General in Bangladesh under the Mandamus Act and the Administrative Procedure Act (“APA”), seeking an order from this Court directing the embassy to adjudicate her application.
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 failure to state a claim Read by a model
Flook has moved to dismiss 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
Flook has moved to dismiss 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).
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
The Court must dismiss this case because Akter has failed to state a plausible claim for unreasonable delay.
The delay claim Dismissed Read by a model
The Court must dismiss this case because Akter has failed to state a plausible claim for unreasonable delay.
Months pending 42 months from the application to the suit; 55.5 months from the application to the court's decision Read by a model
In July 2020, Akter applied for an immigrant visa at the U.S. Embassy in Bangladesh.
TRAC factors The court weighed the TRAC factors
  • 1. Rule of reasonfavors the government
  • 2. Congressional timetablefavors the applicant
  • 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
To sum up, the Court finds that the first (and most important) TRAC factor favors the government.
The government's delay arguments First-in, first-out processing accepted; Line-jumping accepted Read by a model
To begin, the government is following a rule of reason. As it explains, it is using a firstin, first-out approach.
Threshold rulings Consular nonreviewability rejected Read by a model
Also, because Akter has not received any decision on her application, the doctrine of consular nonreviewability does not apply either.
Nationality Bangladesh Read by a model
Fatema Akter is a resident and citizen of Bangladesh.
I-130 category Family preference Read by a model
She is married to a lawful U.S. permanent resident.

How the case ended

This decision is not linked to a docket in the docket record yet, so how the case ended is not shown.

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.