Mahnaz Malekpour Mansoorkhani v. Pamela Bondi, et al.

1 District Judge Kymberly K. Evanson

7 UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE WESTERN DISTRICT OF WASHINGTON 8 AT SEATTLE MAHNAZ MALEKPOUR Case No. 2:25-cv-00294-KKE MANSOORKHANI, STIPULATED MOTION TO HOLD 11 Plaintiff, CASE IN ABEYANCE AND ORDER v. 12 Noted for Consideration: PAMELA BONDI, et al., January 26, 2026 Defendants.

15 For good cause, Plaintiff 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 continue to stay these proceedings through March 12, 2026. Plaintiff brought this litigation pursuant to the Administrative Procedure Act seeking to compel U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (“USCIS”) to adjudicate her asylum application. The parties continue to work towards a resolution to this litigation.

21 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. 2 P. 1.

3 With additional time, this case may be resolved without the need of further judicial intervention. As previously reported, USCIS has conducted Petitioner’s asylum interview and is currently working on necessary security and background checks. Dkt. No. 14. However, USCIS cannot meet the previously anticipated 60-day time frame for adjudication of Plaintiff’s asylum application. On December 2, 2025, USCIS issued a Policy Memorandum (“memorandum”) that placed a hold on all asylum applications, pending a comprehensive review. See https://www.uscis.gov/sites/default/files/document/policy-alerts/PM-602-0192- PendingApplicationsHighRiskCountries-20251202.pdf. (last accessed Jan. 25, 2026). As a result, USCIS is unable to adjudicate Plaintiff’s asylum application until this pause on adjudications is lifted.

13 As additional time is necessary for this to occur, the parties request that the Court hold the case in abeyance until March 12, 2026. The parties will submit a status update on or before March 12, 2026.

16 // // // // // 1 DATED this 26th day of January, 2026.

2 Respectfully submitted, CHARLES NEIL FLOYD CRESCENT LAW, PLLC United States Attorney s/ Michelle R. Lambert s/ Myrna I. Luna MICHELLE R. LAMBERT, NYS #4666657 MYRNA I. LUNA, WSBA# 57440 Assistant United States Attorney Crescent Law, PLLC United States Attorney’s Office 4957 Lakemont Blvd SE, Ste C-4328 Western District of Washington Bellevue, Washington 98006 1201 Pacific Avenue, Suite 700 Phone: 425-832-2030 Tacoma, Washington 98402 Email: [email protected] Phone: (253) 428-3824 Attorneys for Plaintiff Fax: (253) 428-3826 Email: [email protected] Attorneys for Defendants I certify that this memorandum contains 284 words, in compliance with the Local Civil Rules.

1 ORDER 2 The case is held in abeyance until March 12, 2026. The parties shall submit a status update on or before March 12, 2026. It is so ORDERED.

5 DATED this 28th day of January, 2026.

A Kymberly K. Evanson 9 United States District Judge