28 U.S.C. § 1361
Section 1361 · Action to compel an officer of the United States to perform his duty
Amended 1 time on record
Applied in 2,596 court decisions — leading case Mathews v. Eldridge (1976)
Most recently applied in Xia v. Bondi (May 2025)
Applied most in the District Circuit Circuit (290 decisions)
Cases citing this section usually also cite 28 U.S.C. § 1331 · 5 U.S.C. § 701 · 5 U.S.C. § 706
How often courts cite this section
Court decisions citing this, by year.Markers show enactment, consequential amendments, and circuit splits over this section — watch for a citation surge after a change or a disagreement. The dip in the last several years is a data-coverage gap, not a real trend — our corpus holds fewer opinions from the most recent years, so recent citations are undercounted.
The district courts shall have original jurisdiction of any action in the nature of mandamus to compel an officer or employee of the United States or any agency thereof to perform a duty owed to the plaintiff.
Editorial notes U.S. Code · Office of the Law Revision Counsel
Federal Rules of Civil Procedure
Writ of mandamus abolished in United States district courts, but relief available by appropriate action or motion, see rule 81, Appendix to this title.