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Supreme Court shields Postal Service from lawsuits over intentionally undelivered mail

The Supreme Court on Monday said that the U.S. Postal Service may not be sued for intentionally failing to deliver the mail, ruling against a Black landlord who claims her carriers racially discriminated against her. 

The justices ruled 5-4 that an exception for mail issues carved out of the statute allowing certain damages lawsuits against the government by Congress covers acts alleged to be deliberate.  

It reverses a lower court ruling allowing Lebene Konan to seek damages over at least some claims in her lawsuit alleging the Postal Service refused to deliver mail to two addresses she leased as part of a “racially motivated harassment campaign.”  

Justice Clarence Thomas wrote for the majority that, even when postal workers intentionally fail to deliver the mail, the United States retains its sovereign immunity.  

“Given the frequency of postal workers’ interactions with citizens, those suits would arise so often that they would create a significant burden for the Government and the courts,” he wrote.  

Justice Sonia Sotomayor wrote a dissenting opinion joined by her liberal colleagues, Justices Elena Kagan and Ketanji Brown Jackson, and conservative Neil Gorsuch.  

Konan sued the Postal Service under the Federal Tort Claims Act (FTCA), which allows damages lawsuits against the U.S. for certain negligent acts by government employees. 

She claimed that two Postal Service employees made it “impossible” for her or her tenants in Euless, Texas, to receive their mail “solely because she is Black.”  

However, the statute carves out a “postal exception,” leaving the government’s immunity from such suits intact for claims “arising out of the loss, miscarriage or negligent transmission of letters or postal matter.” 

A district court sided with the government, dismissing Konan’s case, but the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 5th Circuit revived it in part after finding that the case does not fall under the postal exception because the acts were intentional.  

“There was no ‘loss’ of mail because the mail was not destroyed or misplaced by unintentional action. Likewise, there was no ‘miscarriage’ because there was no attempt at a carriage. Finally, the postal workers’ actions were intentional and thus cannot constitute a ‘negligent transmission,’” wrote Judge Dana Douglas, an appointee of former President Biden, for the unanimous panel.  

The Justice Department had argued that Congress put the exception in place to protect mail delivery from “disruptive litigation” and covers claims like Konan’s.  

But Konan’s attorneys said the exception was meant to bar lawsuits stemming from mail issues less consequential than hers, like glassware shattering during shipping or a belated birthday gift.  

The Postal Service workers allegedly changed the designated owner of one of Konan’s properties to a white tenant, changing the mailbox lock so only the white tenant could access it. She said it cost her thousands of dollars in rental income when tenants moved out after failing to receive critical mail, from bills and credit card statements to medications. 

“This case couldn’t be more different,” Robert Clary, her lawyer, wrote in a brief to the justices. 

The Supreme Court did not decide whether all of Konan’s claims are barred by the postal exception but vacated the lower decision and sent the case back for further consideration.

Copyright 2026 Nexstar Media Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

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