Mandamus
Demand to Act or Mandamus
A writ of mandamus or mandamus for short, is a command to a public official or institution to perform their duty. The command is usually issued by a court that has jurisdiction over the official. In most instances, this is a federal district court ordering a federal official or branch to do something they have a duty to do, but delayed doing.
For example, if you requested documents under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) from the US Department of Justice (DOJ), or any of its subparts, like the Immigration Courts, with no response for a very long time, you can sue for mandamus. If you make your case, the judge will enter an order commending DOJ to respond to your FOIA request. If you filed for an immigration benefit, such as naturalization, with the US Citizenship and Immigration Service (USCIS), with no decision on your case for years, the Judge will order USCIS to decide your case.
Note that this does not mean you will get the documents you sought in your FOIA request or that you will have your naturalization application approved and become a US citizen. All the Judge is ordering is that the government officials follow the appropriate process applicable to your request or application, and act on that request or application in accordance with the law. In short, the court only tells them to do their job, but not how to do it.
A mandamus also cannot speed up a process just because it is slow. The amount of time granted the institution by law, or if no specific timeframe is provided, then after a passage of time that a reasonable person would consider substantially too long, must have elapsed before you can seek a writ of mandamus.
In practice, this happens often, government bodies are usually very busy and understaffed and either leave certain cases unattended to or are substantially late in getting to them. Often, the cases are approvable once the official gets to it. Filing mandamus very often gets those cases approved quickly, sometimes before the first court date or even within a month of filing.
Such a fast and favorable result cannot be guaranteed. If you happen to have a straightforward application for a benefit for which you qualify, say for employment authorization under a type of immigration status, or removal of conditions on your permanent residence, it may only be taking a look at your file that will get it approved. On the other hand, if your name or other data is stuck in a background security clearance (for example, to make sure you are not a person on a government watch list), the government need only state to the court that it is a national security issue that cannot be resolved at this point.
A mandamus claim stems from a law in 28 US Code Section 1361 – “Action to compel an officer of the United States to perform his duty.” It is often filed in a complaint including other basis for relief, such as the Administration Procedures Act, requiring action by the government in a reasonable time, violation of the Equal Access to Justice Act and failure to act under FOIA if a public document request is involved. The Complaint typically names the US Attorney General and heads of the US department and sub-division involved.
Mandamus may be the recourse you need. Contact a reliable attorney to explore this option.
