District Court Denies USCIS Attempt to Dismiss U Visa Delay Case

On August 18, 2021, in Alvarez Espino v. USCIS, the U.S. District Court for the District of Vermont denied a motion to dismiss filed by Defendant U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services in NILA’s challenge to the agency’s unreasonable delay in placing the plaintiffs on the U visa waiting list. The court concluded that discovery was necessary for it to fully consider the factors that inform whether an agency’s delay is unreasonable. Consequently, in addition to denying the motion to dismiss, the court allowed the parties 6 months to engage in discovery. NILA’s co-counsel in the case is Maria Baldini-Potermin & Associates. Read the decision here.