Judges / District of Columbia

Dabney Langhorne Friedrich

Written decisions in the mandamus and agency-delay group that Judge Dabney Langhorne Friedrich signed, every one listed below, and the agency-delay suits that name the judge.

2,914 written decisions from 2,661 cases in the whole mandamus and agency-delay group, the group's newest decided October 30, 2026. Updated November 3, 2026 at 1:24 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 1,606 public decisions since January 1, 2025 that a CourtListener and GovInfo search for mandamus and agency delay finds, Passim holds 1,371 (85%), measured November 3, 2026. Some of what that search finds are not mandamus decisions. Tell us about a decision we're missing.

These are counts of past written decisions and dockets, not predictions of how any case will be decided. A distribution appears only when at least 5 decisions (or 5 dockets) are behind it; smaller groups are listed, not summarized. How it's counted.

Read these counts as a record of past decisions, not a rate at which this judge rules for either side and not a prediction. Each decision turned on its own facts, its posture and what the parties asked for; the suits that reach a written decision are the contested minority. Read the decisions before drawing anything from them.

How the decisions came out

This page counts 14 of the group's written decisions, from 14 cases; the newest of them was decided March 25, 2026. The line at the top counts the whole group.

14written decisions
14cases they come from
7decisions weigh the TRAC factors
8.3median months from the application to the suit

Each case counts once in these outcome counts, by its latest decision here. A motion to dismiss denied and a later judgment for the government count as the judgment. How decisions are grouped into cases.

Disposition, by case

  • Dismissed11
  • Dismissed as moot3

Prevailing party, by case

  • Government11
  • Neither side3

Months from the application to the suit

8.3 months at the median; half fall between 6.2 and 13.2. 8 cases state it.

Months from the application to the court's decision

18 months at the median; half fall between 13.9 and 21.9. 9 decisions state it.

Leaves out the 4 decisions holding that the agency had acted: their months to the decision are not a delay.

What the suits asked for, by case

  • Decide the application4
  • Finish 221(g) processing9
  • Not recorded1

Agency, by case

  • Department of State12
  • DHS1
  • USCIS1

Form or filing, by case

  • 221(g) (consular refusal)9
  • DS-160 (nonimmigrant visa)8
  • DS-260 (immigrant visa)5
  • I-829 (investor conditions)1

Decisions by year

TRAC rulings

Decisions in which the judge weighed the TRAC factors, newest first, with how the judge found each factor. Factors the decision did not reach are left blank.

DecisionDecided1. Rule of reason2. Congressional timetable3. Human health and welfare4. Competing priorities5. Interests prejudiced6. No impropriety neededDisposition
Dalmar v. Blinken August 26, 2024 favors the governmentfavors the governmentfavors the applicantfavors the governmentfavors the applicantneutral Dismissed
Li v. Heller July 12, 2024 favors the governmentfavors the governmentfavors the applicantfavors the governmentfavors the applicantneutral Dismissed
ODUOR v. BLINKEN March 29, 2024 favors the governmentfavors the governmentfavors the applicantfavors the governmentfavors the applicantneutral Dismissed
Lee v. Blinken February 15, 2024 favors the governmentfavors the governmentfavors the applicantfavors the governmentfavors the applicantneutral Dismissed
Ahmadi v. Scharpf February 12, 2024 favors the governmentfavors the governmentfavors the applicantfavors the governmentfavors the applicantneutral Dismissed
Pourabdollah v. Blinken February 7, 2024 favors the governmentfavors the governmentfavors the applicantfavors the governmentfavors the applicantneutral Dismissed
Whitlock v. United States Department of Homeland Security February 11, 2022 favors the governmentfavors the governmentfavors the applicantfavors the governmentfavors the applicantneutral Dismissed

Every decision, by case

All 14 of the judge's decisions in the group, in 14 cases, newest first. Each case's latest decision comes first and is the one the counts above count; the case's other orders follow it. Download every decision as a spreadsheet (CSV).

DecisionDecidedAgencyFormDispositionPrevailing party
Asgari v. Palmer March 25, 2026 Department of State 221(g), DS-260 Dismissed Government
Ramazanova v. Rubio March 23, 2026 Department of State 221(g), DS-260 Dismissed Government
Baradaran Ghasaban, Sr v. Blinken September 2, 2025 Department of State 221(g), DS-160 Dismissed Government
Dalmar v. Blinken August 26, 2024 Department of State 221(g), DS-260 Dismissed Government
Sheokand v. Mayorkas August 5, 2024 USCIS I-829 Dismissed as moot Neither side
Li v. Heller July 12, 2024 Department of State 221(g), DS-160 Dismissed Government
ODUOR v. BLINKEN March 29, 2024 Department of State DS-260 Dismissed Government
Pietersen v. US Department of State March 21, 2024 Department of State DS-160 Dismissed Government
Lee v. Blinken February 15, 2024 Department of State 221(g), DS-160 Dismissed Government
Ahmadi v. Scharpf February 12, 2024 Department of State 221(g), DS-160 Dismissed Government
Pourabdollah v. Blinken February 7, 2024 Department of State 221(g), DS-160 Dismissed Government
Whitlock v. United States Department of Homeland Security February 11, 2022 Department of State DS-160 Dismissed Government
Sinha v. Pompeo September 30, 2021 Department of State 221(g), DS-160 Dismissed as moot Neither side
Dvorak v. U.S. Department of Homeland Security April 3, 2019 DHS DS-260 Dismissed as moot Neither side

How agency-delay suits ended

Most suits end without a written decision: the agency acts and the parties dismiss. These counts come from the docket record (the federal courts' Integrated Database and CourtListener) and count every mandamus, APA and section 1447(b) suit against any immigration agency, whatever year it was filed, among the dockets that name this judge. Check a delay counts fewer: a court's suits of the last three years against the form's agency.

86suits in the docket record
75have ended
11still pending
120median days from the suit's filing to its end

How the ended suits ended

  • Ended once the agency actedThe plaintiff dismissed, the parties stipulated to dismissal, or the court dismissed as moot: how suits end once the agency decides. The docket rarely says why, or whether the agency approved or denied.54
  • Dismissed on jurisdiction or the meritsDismissed for want of jurisdiction or on the TRAC factors, or judgment for the government.11
  • Dismissed, ground not recordedThe court dismissed and the record gives no ground: it can be a dismissal as moot after the agency acted, for want of prosecution, or a loss.4
  • TransferredMoved to another district court.3
  • Ended, outcome not recordedThe record shows the suit ended but not how.3

Days from the suit's filing to its end

120 days at the median; half fall between 58.5 and 297. 75 dockets state it.

Days from the suit's filing to its end, when it ended once the agency acted

89 days at the median; half fall between 44.5 and 139.5. 54 dockets state it.

23 of these suits have a written decision in the group.