The U.S. Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims (CAVC) is the only Court ("exclusive jurisdiction") to hear appeals of decisions by the Board of Veterans Appeals. A Veteran who appeals to the CAVC is designated as the "Appellant", while the person being sued, the Secretary of Veterans Affairs is referred to as "Appellee."

Interestingly, only the Veteran, NOT the Veterans Administration may appeal to the CAVC. If the VA is not pleased with a decision of the Board of Veterans Appeals, it has no recourse-but the Veteran does!

A Veteran may NOT appeal to the CAVC if the Board of Veterans Appeals has not issued a Final Decision. If a Veteran's case is still in development, for example, additional medical examinations are pending, a CAVC appeal would be premature. The Veteran must have been denied fully and finally, before appealing to the CAVC. Similarly, the CAVC cannot take cases to issue "advisory" or "guidance" opinions to the Veteran (the legal term is "cases in controversy").

The CAVC is occasionally the vehicle for a Veteran to obtain what is known as a "writ." A "writ' is a Court order, which compels the Veterans Administration to perform or to cease to perform a specific act. For example, the CAVC may intervene to order the VA to issue a rating decision, in context of an application for disability benefits.

Cases at the CAVC are usually heard by a single Judge, if the cases are not anticipated to establish or alter existing law and in general, the case is relatively simple. If the case is more complicated and involves new or unique legal or factual issues, it will be assigned to a panel of three judges.

Veterans Disability Appeal Attorney and Lawyer, Randy Zeldin, Esq. is proud to be a member of the Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims and represents Veterans in appeals throughout the 50 States. Randy Zeldin, Esq. represents all Veterans before the Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims on a pro bono (no attorney fee) basis.

Contact us online or call (561) 613-0101 today for a free and confidential consultation!