Noteboom The Law Firm

U.S. Supreme Court Will Hear Disability Deadline Case

December 10, 2010 - There are no reliable numbers detailing the exact amount of wounded soldiers from Afghanistan and Iraq as there are likely thousands of troops not reporting, or underreporting their physical and/or mental health injuries. However, with around 40,000 known injured troops from these wars, the amount of disability claims has skyrocketed.

This rapid increase has caused disagreements between the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) and veterans over the filing of disability claims. In an effort to settle at least one of the issues, the U.S. Supreme Court will hear a case centered around disability claims deadlines.

David Henderson was a Korean War veteran diagnosed with paranoid schizophrenia, and given a 100% disability rating. His local VA denied his application for home care help. From that date he had 120 days to file his appeal in order to have the VA's decision reviewed. Henderson, bedridden as a result of his paranoid schizophrenia, missed his 120 deadline by 15 days and was thereby barred from appealing the VA's decision.

Henderson appealed to The Veterans' Court, which hears veterans' appeals about VA procedural issues. The Veterans' Court refused to give Henderson an extension and the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit confirmed its ruling citing to a 2007 U.S. Supreme Court case.

The U.S. Supreme Court will now decide whether Henderson should be able to appeal the VA's original decision despite having missed the 120 day deadline. At the same time, this case will test the 2007 decision the U.S. Court of Appeals relied on in their affirmation.

The deadline is a creature of federal statute. The Court may rule judges can grant flexibility to the deadline, whereas VA lawyers argue only Congress can grant flexibility. This decision will undoubtedly affect thousands upon thousands of veterans and at least as many claims for disability compensation.