DC Circuit criticizes State Department, sets deadline in dispute over Iranian group

06/02/12: The Blog of Legal Times reports the US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit gave the US State Department four months to decide whether to continue to designate an Iranian dissident group as a foreign terrorist organization.  The DC Circuit said it will remove the People’s Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI) from the list if the State Department fails to act in four months, posing a potential foreign relations headache for the government.  The appeals court strongly criticized the State Department for failing to heed an earlier court order directing the agency to reassess the listing of the Iranian group.  A US Justice Department spokesperson was not immediately reached for comment.  Lawyers for PMOI heralded the ruling.