Passim

Mandamus decisions / Southern District of New York

Esghai v. U.S. Department of State

Southern District of New YorkPaul A. EngelmayerDecided November 12, 2024No. 1:24-cv-02993

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
Esghai claims that the State Department has unlawfully delayed its adjudication of the visa application of his mother, Shiva Zojaji.
Form or filing 221(g) (consular refusal); DS-260 (immigrant visa) Read by a model
Congress has established a two-step process to obtain an immigrant visa for noncitizens who, like Zojaji, are immediate relatives of a U.S. citizen and are applying from abroad.
What the suit asked for Finish 221(g) processing Read by a model
In particular, he seeks a court order compelling reconsideration of Zojaji’s already-refused application in light of additional information that she submitted after the interview.
Kind of order A ruling on a motion or the petition Read by a model
For the foregoing reasons, the Court grants the State Department’s motion and dismisses the Complaint.
Motion decided Motion to dismiss for lack of jurisdiction; Motion to dismiss for failure to state a claim Read by a model
The State Department has moved to dismiss the Complaint pursuant to Federal Rules of Civil Procedure 12(b)(1) and 12(b)(6).
Whose motion The government's motion Read by a model
The State Department has moved to dismiss the Complaint pursuant to Federal Rules of Civil Procedure 12(b)(1) and 12(b)(6).
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 grants the State Department’s motion and dismisses the Complaint.
Prevailing party Government Read by a model
For the foregoing reasons, the Court grants the State Department’s motion and dismisses the Complaint.
The delay claim Dismissed Read by a model
For the foregoing reasons, the Court grants the State Department’s motion and dismisses the Complaint.
The other claims Dismissed Read by a model
The Court therefore dismisses the Complaint’s due process claim for failure to plausibly allege the deprivation of a protected interest.
Months pending 8.2 months from the application to the suit; 15 months from the application to the court's decision Read by a model
On or about August 14, 2023, a consular officer interviewed Zojaji at the U.S. Embassy in Yerevan.
TRAC factors The court did not weigh the TRAC factors Read by a model
Threshold rulings Consular nonreviewability rejected; Mootness argument rejected; No duty to re-adjudicate a 221(g) refusal; APA adequate-remedy bar applied (mandamus claim fails) Read by a model
Contrary to the State Department’s argument, consular nonreviewability does not require dismissal for lack of subject matter jurisdiction.
Nationality Iran Read by a model
Esghai is a U.S. citizen, and his mother, Zojaji, is a citizen of Iran.
I-130 category Immediate relative Read by a model
Congress has established a two-step process to obtain an immigrant visa for noncitizens who, like Zojaji, are immediate relatives of a U.S. citizen and are applying from abroad.

How the case ended

Docket
No. 1:24-cv-02993
Filed
April 19, 2024
Ended
November 12, 2024
Suit's filing to its end
207 days
How it ended
Dismissed on jurisdiction or the merits
From the record
order 2024-11-12 dismisses for want of jurisdiction; 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.

Supreme Court and Second 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.