In Re WILLIAM S. GRIFFIN, III v. McDonough, 100 F.4th 1388, 1393 Fed. Cir. 2024 quoting Cheney v. U.S. Dist. Ct. for…

NOTE: This order is nonprecedential.
United States Court of Appeals
for the Federal Circuit
______________________
In Re WILLIAM S. GRIFFIN, III,
Petitioner
______________________
2026-125
______________________
On Petition for Writ of Mandamus to the Merit Sys-
tems Protection Board in No. DC-0752-25-2887-I-1.
______________________
ON PETITION AND MOTION
______________________
Before TARANTO, MAYER, and STARK, Circuit Judges.
PER CURIAM.
O R D E R
William S. Griffin, III filed a petition for a writ of man-
damus asking the court to compel the Merit Systems Pro-
tection Board to decide his motion for default judgment and
find the agency’s failure to respond to that motion consti-
tutes waiver of its opposition. The next day, the adminis-
trative judge issued an initial decision denying all relief
requested by Mr. Griffin and dismissed his appeal. That
decision states that it will become final on February 20,
2026, unless Mr. Griffin files a petition for the Board’s re-
view by that date. And it further describes how he may
seek judicial review.
Case: 26-125 Document: 9 Page: 1 Filed: 02/13/2026

-- 1 of 2 --

IN RE GRIFFIN 2
A writ of mandamus is an extraordinary remedy and
may only issue if petitioner has shown a clear and indis-
putable right to relief and that there are no other adequate
means to attain the relief desired—“a condition designed to
ensure that the writ will not be used as a substitute for the
regular appeals process.” Love v. McDonough, 100 F.4th
1388, 1393 (Fed. Cir. 2024) (quoting Cheney v. U.S. Dist.
Ct. for D.C., 542 U.S. 367, 380–81 (2004)). Mr. Griffin has
not satisfied those requirements here. The Board has since
acted on his motion. And he may pursue any challenges on
the merits of the denial of that relief by filing a petition for
review after the Board enters a final decision.
Accordingly,
IT IS ORDERED THAT:
(1) The petition is denied.
(2) The motion to proceed in forma pauperis is
granted.
February 13, 2026
Date
FOR THE COURT
Case: 26-125 Document: 9 Page: 2 Filed: 02/13/2026

-- 2 of 2 --