Bielarus1 v. Mayorkas

1 District Judge Marsha J. Pechman

7 UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE WESTERN DISTRICT OF WASHINGTON 8 AT SEATTLE ZYVIE BIELARUS1, et al., Case No. 2:24-cv-01925-MJP Plaintiffs, STIPULATED MOTION TO HOLD 11 v. CASE IN ABEYANCE AND [PROPOSED] ORDER BENJAMINE HUFFMAN1, et al., Noted for Consideration: 13 Defendants. January 24, 2025 15 Plaintiffs and Defendants, by and through their counsel of record, pursuant to Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 6 and Local Rules 7(d)(1), 10(g) and 16, hereby jointly stipulate and move to stay these proceedings until August 13, 2025. Plaintiffs brought this litigation pursuant to the Administrative Procedure Act and Mandamus Act seeking, inter alia, to compel the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (“USCIS”) to adjudicate their Form I-589, Application for Asylum and for Withholding of Removal. Defendants’ response to the Complaint is currently due 1 Pursuant to Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 25(d), Defendants substitute Acting Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security (“DHS”) Benjamine Huffman for former Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas; and Acting Director of U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (“USCIS”) Jennifer Higgins for former Director Ur Jaddou.

1 on January 27, 2025. The parties are currently working towards a resolution to this litigation. For good cause, the parties request that the Court hold the case in abeyance until August 13, 2025.

3 Courts have “broad discretion” to stay proceedings. Clinton v. Jones, 520 U.S. 681, 706 (1997). “[T]he power to stay proceedings is incidental to the power inherent in every court to control the disposition of the causes on its docket with economy of time and effort for itself, for counsel, and for litigants.” Landis v. N. Am. Co., 299 U.S. 248, 254 (1936); see also Fed. R. Civ. 7 P. 1.

8 With additional time, this case may be resolved without the need of further judicial intervention. USCIS has scheduled Plaintiffs’ asylum interview for April 15, 2025. USCIS agrees to diligently work towards completing the adjudication within 120 days of the interview, absent unforeseen or exceptional circumstances that would require additional time for adjudication. If the adjudication is not completed within that time, USCIS will provide a status report to the Court.

13 Plaintiffs will submit all supplemental documents and evidence, if any, to USCIS seven to ten days prior to the interview date. Plaintiffs recognize that failure to submit documents prior to the interview may require the interview(s) to be rescheduled and the adjudication(s) delayed. If needed, Plaintiffs will bring an interpreter to the interview, otherwise the interview will need to be rescheduled and the adjudication delayed. After the interview, USCIS will need time to adjudicate Plaintiffs’ asylum application. Once the application is adjudicated, Plaintiffs will dismiss the case with each party to bear their own litigation costs and attorneys’ fees. Accordingly, the parties request this abeyance to allow USCIS to conduct Plaintiffs’ asylum interview and then process their asylum application.

22 As additional time is necessary for this to occur, the parties request that the Court hold the case in abeyance until August 13, 2025. The parties will submit a joint status report on or before August 13, 2025.

1 DATED this 29th day of January, 2025.

2 Respectfully submitted, TESSA M. GORMAN LAW OFFICES OF BART KLEIN United States Attorney s/ Michelle R. Lambert s/ Bart Klein MICHELLE R. LAMBERT, NYS #4666657 BART KLEIN WSBA# 10909 Assistant United States Attorney Law Offices of Bart Klein United States Attorney’s Office 605 First Avenue, #500 Western District of Washington Seattle, Washington 98104 1201 Pacific Avenue, Suite 700 Phone: 206-755-5651 Tacoma, Washington 98402 Email: [email protected] Phone: (253) 428-3824 Attorney for Plaintiffs Fax: (253) 428-3826 Email: [email protected] Attorneys for Defendants I certify that this memorandum contains 413 words, in compliance with the Local Civil Rules.

1 [PROPOSED] ORDER 2 The case is held in abeyance until August 13, 2025. The parties shall submit a joint status report on or before August 13, 2025. It is so ORDERED.

5 DATED this 29th day of January, 2025.

A MARSHA J. PECHMAN United States District Judge