U.S. Code » Title 28 » Part PART VI— PARTICULAR PROCEEDINGS › Chapter CHAPTER 165— UNITED STATES COURT OF FEDERAL CLAIMS PROCEDURE

28 U.S.C. § 2513

Unjust conviction and imprisonment

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(a) Any person suing under section 1495 of this title must allege and prove that:(1) His conviction has been reversed or set aside on the ground that he is not guilty of the offense of which he was convicted, or on new trial or rehearing he was found not guilty of such offense, as appears from the record or certificate of the court setting aside or reversing such conviction, or that he has been pardoned upon the stated ground of innocence and unjust conviction and(2) He did not commit any of the acts charged or his acts, deeds, or omissions in connection with such charge constituted no offense against the United States, or any State, Territory or the District of Columbia, and he did not by misconduct or neglect cause or bring about his own prosecution.(b) Proof of the requisite facts shall be by a certificate of the court or pardon wherein such facts are alleged to appear, and other evidence thereof shall not be received.(c) No pardon or certified copy of a pardon shall be considered by the United States Court of Federal Claims unless it contains recitals that the pardon was granted after applicant had exhausted all recourse to the courts and that the time for any court to exercise its jurisdiction had expired.(d) The Court may permit the plaintiff to prosecute such action in forma pauperis.(e) The amount of damages awarded shall not exceed $100,000 for each 12-month period of incarceration for any plaintiff who was unjustly sentenced to death and $50,000 for each 12-month period of incarceration for any other plaintiff.(June 25, 1948, ch. 646, 62 Stat. 978; Sept. 3, 1954, ch. 1263, § 56, 68 Stat. 1247; Pub. L. 97–164, title I, § 139(j)(2), Apr. 2, 1982, 96 Stat. 43; Pub. L. 102–572, title IX, § 902(a)(1), Oct. 29, 1992, 106 Stat. 4516; Pub. L. 108–405, title IV, § 431, Oct. 30, 2004, 118 Stat. 2293.)Historical and Revision Notes

Based on sections 729–732 of title 18, U.S.C., 1940 ed., Crimes and Criminal Procedure (May 24, 1938, ch. 266, §§ 1–4, 52 Stat. 438.)

Sections 729–732 of title 18, U.S.C., 1940 ed., were consolidated and completely rewritten in order to clarify ambiguities which made the statute unworkable as enacted originally. Jurisdictional provisions of section 729 of title 18, U.S.C., 1940 ed., are incorporated in section 1495 of this title.

Changes were made in phraseology.

Editorial NotesAmendments

2004—Subsec. (e). Pub. L. 108–405 substituted “exceed $100,000 for each 12-month period of incarceration for any plaintiff who was unjustly sentenced to death and $50,000 for each 12-month period of incarceration for any other plaintiff” for “exceed the sum of $5,000”.

1992—Subsec. (c). Pub. L. 102–572 substituted “United States Court of Federal Claims” for “United States Claims Court”.

1982—Subsec. (c). Pub. L. 97–164 substituted “United States Claims Court” for “Court of Claims”.

1954—Subsec. (c). Act Sept. 3, 1954, substituted “considered by” for “filed with”.

Statutory Notes and Related SubsidiariesEffective Date of 1992 Amendment

Amendment by Pub. L. 102–572 effective Oct. 29, 1992, see section 911 of Pub. L. 102–572, set out as a note under section 171 of this title.

Effective Date of 1982 Amendment

Amendment by Pub. L. 97–164 effective Oct. 1, 1982, see section 402 of Pub. L. 97–164, set out as a note under section 171 of this title.

Notes of Decisions
Cited in 244 cases (65 in the last 5 years), 1951–2026 · leading case: United States v. Graham, 608 F.3d 164 (4th Cir. 2010).
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United States v. Graham, 608 F.3d 164 (4th Cir. 2010). · cites it 18× “the conclusions mandated by 28 U.S.C. § 2513 " as a necessary condition to the award of a certificate of innocence.”
Humphrey v. United States, 52 Fed. Cl. 593 (Fed. Cl. 2002). · cites it 8× “This section explicitly provides that “[t]he United States Court of Federal Claims shall have jurisdiction to render judgment upon any claim for damages by any person unjustly convicted of an offense against the United States and imprisoned.”
United States v. Ernest Grubbs, 773 F.3d 726 (6th Cir. 2014). · cites it 10× “Defendant Ernest Wayne Grubbs appeals from the district court’s order denying his motion pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 2513 for a certificate of innocence on the charge of being a felon in possession of a firearm in violation of 18 U.”
Nyabwa v. United States, 130 Fed. Cl. 179 (Fed. Cl. 2017). · cites it 17× “§ 1495 ; 28 U.S.C. § 2513 ; Motion to Dismiss; Pro Se.”
United States v. Thomas Mills, Sr., 773 F.3d 563 (4th Cir. 2014). · cites it 11× “On January 31, 2013, Mills moved for a certificate of actual innocence under 28 U.S.C. § 2513 (2012). A person must obtain such a certificate before recovering damages from the Government for unjust imprisonment under 28 U.”
Mhammad Abu-Shawish v. United States, 898 F.3d 726 (7th Cir. 2018). “28 U.S.C. § 2513 . 2 Section 2513(a) includes two paragraphs that impose distinct requirements for what a petitioner must allege and prove: First, the petitioner must establish that the record of the court setting aside or reversing his conviction demonstrates that the court did…”
Burgess v. United States, 20 Cl. Ct. 701 (Ct. Cl. 1990). · cites it 10× “Defendant contends that plaintiff has failed to procure a satisfactory certificate of innocence which 28 U.S.C. § 2513 requires in order to obtain relief for unjust conviction and wrongful imprisonment under 28 U.”
United States v. Alvin Gaskins, 6 F.4th 1350 (D.C. Cir. 2021). · cites it 11× “2 PILLARD, Circuit Judge: Alvin Gaskins seeks a certificate of innocence under 28 U.S.C. § 2513 . A certificate of innocence is not only a formal declaration of innocence but also a prerequisite to a claim against the United States for compensation for wrongful conviction and…”
United States v. Richard Moon, 31 F.4th 259 (4th Cir. 2022). · cites it 7× “Moon subsequently petitioned the district court under 28 U.S.C. § 2513 for a certificate of innocence, which would permit him to sue the United States for damages resulting from his allegedly wrongful conviction.”
Bolduc v. United States, 72 Fed. Cl. 187 (Fed. Cl. 2006). · cites it 7× “28 U.S.C. § 2513 (2000). Mister Bolduc asserts that section 2513 “unambiguously requires a certificate of in *193 nocence before a claim can be filed.”
Reid v. United States, 95 Fed. Cl. 243 (Fed. Cl. 2010). · cites it 5× “28 U.S.C. § 2513 (a). Furthermore, the plaintiff must provide a certificate of the court or pardon showing that the plaintiff meets the two requirements set forth in 28 U.”
Kenyon v. United States, 683 F. App'x 945 (Fed. Cir. 2017). · cites it 3× “Furthermore, the Claims Court determined that it did not have jurisdiction over Kenyon’s wrongful imprisonment claims for failure to satisfy the statutory requirements under 28 U.S.C. § 2513 (a), or jurisdiction to review the criminal proceedings leading to Kenyon’s conviction…”
Show all 244 citing cases →
— 28 U.S.C. § 2513(a) — 1 case
Kenyon v. United States, 127 Fed. Cl. 767 (Fed. Cl. 2016).
— 28 U.S.C. § 2513(a)(2) — 1 case
Gregory Marino v. State of Alaska (Alaska Ct. App. 2025).
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