No. 19-8031October Term 2019Decided Apr 20, 2020
Gregg v. U.S. Dist. Court for the Dist. of S.D.
The Supreme Court did not use this case to decide whether the lower courts were wrong; it left the existing result untouched.
Case status
- Current stage
- Decided
- Latest event
- Decision released Apr 20, 2020
- What it's about
The petitioner has asked the Supreme Court to review a lower court decision involving the U.S. District Court for the District of South Dakota and is seeking permission to proceed without paying filing fees.
Question presented
Whether the United States District Court for the District of South Dakota and the United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit erred in denying Petitioner's petition for a writ of mandamus seeking to compel the district court to file his civil complaint?
- Case path
United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit / Decision released Apr 20, 2020
- Area
Decided Supreme Court case
Briefing
What it's about
Gregg asked the Supreme Court to review lower-court refusals to force the federal district court in South Dakota to file his civil complaint, and he sought to proceed without paying filing fees. Based on the record provided, the Court declined to take up the petition, so it did not answer the underlying legal question and left the lower-court result in place.
Impact
For Gregg, that means the lower-court outcome stays in place. For other people trying to get the Supreme Court to step into filing disputes, this case offers no new national rule or guidance.
What's next
This Supreme Court docket is over. Any further action would have to happen outside this closed petition, while the Eighth Circuit result remains in place.
What was Gregg asking the Supreme Court to do in Gregg v. U.S. Dist. Court for the Dist. of S.D.?
He asked the Court to review lower-court refusals to force the South Dakota federal district court to file his civil complaint. He also sought to proceed without paying filing fees.
Who is affected by the outcome in this case?
Gregg is affected most because the lower-court result stays in place. Other people with similar filing disputes get no new Supreme Court guidance from this docket.
What happens next in Gregg v. U.S. Dist. Court for the Dist. of S.D.?
Nothing further happens in this Supreme Court docket. The case is closed here, and the underlying lower-court result remains unchanged.
Decision
What the Court decided
The Supreme Court did not use this case to decide whether the lower courts were wrong; it left the existing result untouched.
Impact
For Gregg, that means the lower-court outcome stays in place. For other people trying to get the Supreme Court to step into filing disputes, this case offers no new national rule or guidance.
Not official Court text.
Timing
Decided April 20, 2020
The Court released its decision on April 20, 2020 without hearing oral argument.
Related cases
Grounding
- Grounding
- Primary materials plus reporting.
- Note
- Best-effort analysis: this explainer relies on a mix of primary materials and trusted secondary sources. Official filings and opinions remain authoritative.
- Checked
- Jul 25, 2026
- Method
- Methodology