Judges / Northern District of Iowa

Leonard Terry Strand

Written decisions in the mandamus and agency-delay group that Judge Leonard Terry Strand 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 6 of the group's written decisions, from 6 cases; the newest of them was decided July 24, 2026. The line at the top counts the whole group.

6written decisions
6cases they come from
0decisions weigh the TRAC factors
–median 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

  • Dismissed4
  • Dismissed as moot2

Prevailing party, by case

  • Government4
  • Neither side2

Months from the application to the suit

Fewer than five cases state it (1); no distribution is shown.

Months from the application to the court's decision

Fewer than five decisions state it (1); no distribution is shown.

Leaves out the 2 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 application3
  • Some other action3

Agency, by case

  • USCIS4
  • Not recorded2

Form or filing, by case

  • I-130 (relative petition)1
  • I-485 (adjustment of status)1
  • I-918 (U visa)1

Decisions by year

TRAC rulings

None of the judge's decisions in the group weighs the TRAC factors.

Every decision, by case

All 6 of the judge's decisions in the group, in 6 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
Cervantes Merino v. Mullin et al July 24, 2026 USCIS Dismissed Government
Gonzalez Pena v. Department of Homeland Security January 13, 2026 Not recorded Dismissed Government
Catano Figueroa v. Department of Homeland Security, Immigration and Customs Enforcement January 13, 2026 Not recorded Dismissed Government
Chaudhari v. Jaddou July 7, 2025 USCIS I-918 Dismissed as moot Neither side
Poeppe v. United States Department of Justice April 14, 2025 USCIS I-130 Dismissed as moot Neither side
Singh v. United States Department of Homeland Security February 24, 2023 USCIS I-485 Dismissed Government

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.

10suits in the docket record
10have ended
0still pending
99.5median 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.6
  • Dismissed on jurisdiction or the meritsDismissed for want of jurisdiction or on the TRAC factors, or judgment for the government.3
  • Ended, outcome not recordedThe record shows the suit ended but not how.1

Days from the suit's filing to its end

99.5 days at the median; half fall between 65.8 and 136. 10 dockets state it.

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

68.5 days at the median; half fall between 43.5 and 104.8. 6 dockets state it.

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