Passim

Mandamus decisions / District of Columbia

Zhang v. Chertoff

District of ColumbiaRichard W. RobertsDecided March 30, 2009No. 1:07-cv-01209

Read the decisionOriginal on CourtListener

2,996 written decisions from 2,731 cases in the whole mandamus and agency-delay group, the group's newest decided November 12, 2026. Updated November 14, 2026 at 1:17 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 1,617 public decisions since January 1, 2025 that a CourtListener and GovInfo search for mandamus and agency delay finds, Passim holds 1,406 (87%), 1,039 of them in this group, measured November 14, 2026. Some of what that search finds are not mandamus decisions. Tell us about a decision we're missing.

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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 USCIS Read by a model
Zhang, a citizen of the People’s Republic of China, brings this action seeking injunctive relief under the APA or mandamus relief compelling the USCIS to adjudicate his I-589 Application for Asylum and Withholding of Removal filed May 12, 2004.
Form or filing I-589 (asylum) Read by a model
Zhang, a citizen of the People’s Republic of China, brings this action seeking injunctive relief under the APA or mandamus relief compelling the USCIS to adjudicate his I-589 Application for Asylum and Withholding of Removal filed May 12, 2004.
What the suit asked for Decide the asylum application Read by a model
compelling the USCIS to adjudicate his new application for asylum and withholding of removal.
Kind of order A ruling on a motion or the petition Read by a model
Thus, the defendants’ motion for summary judgment will be granted, the plaintiff’s motion for summary judgment will be denied, and the defendant’s motion to dismiss will be denied as moot.
Motion decided Other motion to dismiss; Summary judgment Read by a model
Thus, the defendants’ motion for summary judgment will be granted, the plaintiff’s motion for summary judgment will be denied, and the defendant’s motion to dismiss will be denied as moot.
Whose motion Cross-motions Read by a model
Thus, the defendants’ motion for summary judgment will be granted, the plaintiff’s motion for summary judgment will be denied, and the defendant’s motion to dismiss will be denied as moot.
Disposition Granted in the government's favor The principal motion was granted in full: summary judgment for either side, an injunction or TRO, a writ or order to act, fees. A motion to dismiss granted in full counts as Dismissed; a transfer is listed apart. Read by a model
Because Zhang has not established that the defendants have any unfulfilled duty to act after determining the USCIS lacks jurisdiction over his second asylum application, the defendants’ motion for summary judgment will be granted.
Prevailing party Government Read by a model
Because Zhang has not established that the defendants have any unfulfilled duty to act after determining the USCIS lacks jurisdiction over his second asylum application, the defendants’ motion for summary judgment will be granted.
The delay claim Relief denied Read by a model
Thus, the defendants’ motion for summary judgment will be granted, the plaintiff’s motion for summary judgment will be denied, and the defendant’s motion to dismiss will be denied as moot.
Months pending 58.6 months from the application to the court's decision Read by a model
On May 12, 2004, Zhang submitted a new application for asylum and withholding of removal to the USCIS Service Center for the District of Columbia.
TRAC factors The court did not weigh the TRAC factors Read by a model
Threshold rulings None Read by a model
Nationality China Read by a model
Zhang, a citizen of the People’s Republic of China

How the case ended

Docket
No. 1:07-cv-01209
Filed
July 5, 2007
Ended
March 31, 2009
Suit's filing to its end
635 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.

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 14, 2026. Check the current status before relying on one.