'Bad decision': Supreme Court blocks ability to sue if USPS refuses to deliver mail
Legal analysts are calling a bizarre case before the U.S. Supreme Court a "bad decision" on Tuesday.
In the case USPS v. Konan, the Court was asked to decide whether the Federal Tort Claims Act’s (FTCA) postal exception covers if someone intentionally failed to deliver someone's mail. The act already blocks such claims against the government that arise out of the “loss, miscarriage, or negligent transmission” of the mail.
The incident began when a landlady in Texas discovered her key to her mailbox no longer worked. She couldn't get the mail for her tenants unless she proved she owned the property. It was easy enough, but it didn't end there, SCOTUS Blog reported in Oct. 2025. Petitioner, Lebene Konan, alleged that two local USPS employees led “a campaign of racial harassment," involving the refusal to deliver the mail. She filed more than 50 administrative complaints before she sued.
The case against the individuals was dismissed, but the one against the U.S. government persisted. The Supreme Court ruled Tuesday that the government enjoys "sovereign immunity." Conservative Justice Neil Gorsuch joined with the liberals in the 5-4 decision.
Slate's legal analyst Mark Joseph Stern announced the ruling, calling it a "bad decision" and citing Justice Sonia Sotomayor, who explained that it was a clear case of flagrant racial discrimination.
"She alleges that the United States Postal Service employees intentionally withheld delivery because they did not like 'that a black person own[ed]' the properties and 'lease[d] rooms ... to white people.'"
Even the conservative Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals didn't agree with the Supreme Court on the matter, the Federalist Society noted.
It prompted questions from at least four people about whether it means the USPS could now refuse to deliver ballots in states with all-mail voting.
City University of New York Professor Angus Johnston wrote, "We used to live in a country that worked like this: 1. Congress passes a 'you can't sue if USPS lost your mail' law. 2. SCOTUS says 'that means you can't sue if USPS threw your mail away.' 3. Congress passes a law saying 'you absolutely can, because "lost" and "threw away" are different.'"
"Folks should note the word 'damages' above," said Georgetown Law School Professor Steve Vladeck. "It remains possible to challenge USPS policies through other legal avenues, including suits for injunctive relief and/or under the Administrative Procedure Act. But here's yet another example of how hard it is to sue the federal government for money."
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