United States Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims
From Ballotpedia - Reading time: 5 min
| Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims |
|---|
| Federal Circuit |
|
| Judgeships |
| Posts: 9 |
| Judges: 9 |
| Vacancies: 0 |
| Judges |
| Chief: Margaret Bartley |
| Active judges: Michael P. Allen, Margaret Bartley, Joseph Falvey, William Greenberg, Grant Jaquith, Scott Laurer, Amanda Meredith, Coral W. Pietsch, Joseph Toth Senior judges: |
The United States Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims is the federal court that hears appeals from the Board of Veterans Appeals (BVA), an administrative board that itself hears appeals from the Department of Veterans Affairs (DVA). Decisions are appealed to the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit.
The court's nine judges are appointed by the President to 15-year terms. The court's retired judges each have the option of being called back as senior judges if they are needed. In this case, they are treated as senior judges and hold all power and authority that comes with that title.[1] The court was temporarily expanded on December 31, 2009, to nine judicial posts. This extension was in effect until December 31, 2020.[2]
The court hears no new testimony, conducts no trials, and considers no new evidence. Instead, it considers the BVA decision, the administrative record that was before the DVA, and briefs of the parties before it. The court holds oral argument only in cases presenting new legal issues.
Vacancies[edit]
- See also: Current federal judicial vacancies
There are no current vacancies on the United States Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims, out of the court's nine judicial positions.
Pending nominations[edit]
There are no pending nominees for this court.
Active judges[edit]
Sitting judges[edit]
All judges are nominated to posts for 15 years.
| Judge | Appointed By | Assumed Office | Bachelors | Law |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| June 28, 2012 - |
College of St. Teresa |
Catholic University of America |
||
| June 28, 2012 - |
Pennsylvania State University, 1981 |
American University, Washington College of Law, 1993 |
||
| December 28, 2012 - |
Johns Hopkins University, 1964 |
Rutgers University Law, 1967 |
||
| August 9, 2017 - |
State University of New York, Buffalo |
State University of New York, Buffalo |
||
| August 9, 2017 - |
University of Chicago |
Ave Maria School of Law |
||
| August 11, 2017 - |
University of Rochester |
Columbia University School of Law |
||
| May 1, 2018 - |
University of Notre Dame |
Notre Dame Law School |
||
| August 3, 2020 - |
Rutgers University, 1987 |
Temple University Law School, 2001 |
||
| September 2, 2020 - |
Presbyterian College, 1979 |
University of Florida College of Law, 1982 |
Active judges by appointing political party[edit]
The list below displays the number of active judges by the party of the appointing president. It does not reflect how a judge may rule on specific cases or their own political preferences.
- Democrat appointed: 3
- Republican appointed: 6
Senior judges[edit]
| Judge | Appointed By | Assumed Office | Bachelors | Law |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 - |
University of Utah |
American University Law School |
||
| 2002 - |
University of Wyoming, 1957 |
University of Wyoming Law, 1959 |
||
| September 14, 2004 - |
University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign, 1963 |
Harvard Law School |
||
| 2010 - |
West Virginia State College, 1965 |
Howard University Law, 1968 |
||
| August 31, 2015 - |
University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign, 1967 |
University of Illinois Law, 1970 |
||
| 2016 - |
United States Military Academy |
University of Florida Law |
||
| October 8, 2016 - |
U.S. Naval Academy |
University of the Pacific Law |
||
| April 30, 2017 - |
South Dakota State University, 1971 |
University of Toledo Law, 1973 |
||
| 2019 - |
University of California, Irvine, 1990 |
George Washington University Law Center, 1993 |
||
| 2019 - |
University of Hartford, 1975 |
Georgetown University Law Center, 1978 |
Senior judges by appointing political party[edit]
Below is a display of the number of senior judges by the party of the appointing president. It does not reflect how a judge may rule on specific cases or their own political preferences.
- Democrat appointed: 1
- Republican appointed: 9
Jurisdiction[edit]
The court has appellate jurisdiction over claims across the United States from the Board of Veterans Appeals.
History[edit]
Before the creation of the court, the only recourse for veterans denied benefits was the Veterans Administration agency. After the Vietnam War, the number of veterans calling for benefits and the lack of judicial review contributed to public outcry. The court was created on November 18, 1988, under the Judicial Review Act. The creation of the court also opened the door for lawyers to represent clients for reasonable fees. The court is the sixth court with national jurisdiction founded by Congress. Originally entitled the United States Court of Veterans Appeals, the name was changed in 1999 to its current designation.[3]
Judicial posts[edit]
The court has seven judicial posts, with each judge appointed for 15 years.[3] The court was temporarily expanded to nine judicial posts on December 31, 2009. This extension is in effect until December 31, 2020.[4]
Noteworthy decisions[edit]
You can find a list of decisions at U.S. Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims-Opinions and Decisions.
Former judges[edit]
For more information about the judges of the Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims, see former federal judges of the Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims.
Federal courthouse[edit]
The court is located in Washington, D.C.
About United States Courts of Appeal[edit]
The United States courts of appeals (or circuit courts) are the intermediate appellate courts of the United States federal courts. The court of appeals was originally created in 1891 and has grown to include thirteen courts.
A court of appeals decides appeals from any of the district courts that are in its federal judicial circuit. The appeals courts also can hear appeals from some administrative agencies. Decisions of the federal appeals courts can, in turn, be appealed to the Supreme Court of the United States.
There are thirteen United States courts of appeals. In addition, there are other federal courts (such as the Court of Appeals for the Armed Forces, which hears appeals in court-martial cases) that have "Court of Appeals" in their titles.
The eleven "numbered" circuits and the D.C. Circuit are defined by geography. The thirteenth court of appeal is the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit. This court has nationwide jurisdiction over certain types of appeals based on what the underlying legal case is about.
All of the courts of appeals also hear appeals from some administrative agency decisions and rulemaking. The largest share of this type of case is heard by the D.C. Circuit. The Federal Circuit hears appeals from specialized trial courts, primarily the Court of International Trade and the Court of Federal Claims, as well as appeals from the district courts in patent cases and certain other specialized matters.
Federal circuit court judges are appointed for life. They are paid approximately $179,500 annually. At the age of 65, a federal judge may choose to retire with his or her full salary. Judges may also choose to go on senior status at age 65, if they have served actively for 15 years.[5]
Appointments by president[edit]
The chart below shows the number of appeals court judges confirmed by the U.S. Senate through September 1 of the second year of each president's term in office. At this point in the term, President Trump had the most appeals court appointments with 26.
Judges by circuit[edit]
- See also: Judicial vacancies in federal courts
The table below displays the number of judges in each circuit and indicates how many were appointed by presidents from each major political party. It also includes the number of vacancies on a circuit and how many pending nominations for that circuit are before the United States Senate. The table can be sorted by clicking the column headers above the line. It is updated every Monday.
See also[edit]
External links[edit]
Footnotes[edit]
- ↑ US Courts, "About the Court," accessed September 16, 2013
- ↑ Cornell Legal Information Institute, "38 USC § 7253 - Composition," accessed July 8, 2017
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 US Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims, "About the Court," accessed May 2, 2021
- ↑ Ballotpedia staff, "Email communication with Allison Fentress, U.S. Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims librarian," April 3, 2020
- ↑ United States Courts, "FAQs: Federal Judges," accessed May 5, 2021
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