Executive Branch Discretion

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7^th Circuit Court of Appeals

Case Name: Melody Pak v. Joseph R. Biden, Jr.

Case No.: 23-1392

Officials: Wood, Scudder, and St. Eve, Circuit Judges.

Focus: Executive Branch Discretion

The Seventh Circuit affirmed the dismissal of a lawsuit brought by four Iranian nationals and their family members against the President and several federal officials. The plaintiffs challenged the denial of their visa applications on the grounds of terrorism-related inadmissibility due to their mandatory military service in Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), which was designated a terrorist organization by the U.S. in 2019.

The plaintiffs alleged that this systemic practice of denying visa applications without providing an opportunity to establish eligibility for exemptions under the Terrorism-Related Inadmissibility Grounds (TRIG) violated their rights under the Administrative Procedure Act (APA) and the Fifth Amendment’s Due Process Clause. However, the district court dismissed the case based on the doctrine of consular nonreviewability, which limits judicial review of consular decisions on visa applications.

The appeals court upheld the dismissal, citing Supreme Court precedents that support the doctrine of consular nonreviewability, emphasizing the executive branch’s discretion in matters of national security and immigration. The court noted that the plaintiffs’ claims were essentially challenges to the substantive decisions made by consular officers, which are not subject to judicial review due to the discretion granted to the executive branch. The court found that the consular officers’ decisions were facially legitimate and bona fide, and there was no evidence of bad faith that would warrant a more in-depth review.

Affirmed.

Decided 01/31/24

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