VETERANS – Jurisdiction Federal Circuit

Jurisdiction United States Court of Appeals for Federal Circuit (CAFC)

LEON DAVIS, Claimant-Appellant         

         v.

DOUGLAS A. COLLINS, SECRETARY OF VETERANS AFFAIRS,

Respondent-Appellee

                                    176 F.4^th 663 (Fed. Cir. 2026)

Leon Davis sought review by the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit (CAFC) of a decision by the United States Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims (CAVC – Veterans Court) dismissing his appeal of a Board of Veterans Appeals (BVA) decision. CAFC decided that the Veterans Court committed no legal error in determining its jurisdiction, and that CAFC lacked jurisdiction over Mr. Davis’s appeal.

CAFC review of decisions by the Veterans Court is limited by statute. See Wanless v. Shinseki, 618 F.3d 1333, 1336 (Fed. Cir. 2010). CAFC may review and decide challenges to the validity or interpretation of any statute or regulation and may interpret constitutional and statutory provisions if presented and necessary to the decision. 38 U.S.C. § 7292(c). But absent a legitimate constitutional issue, CAFC cannot review challenges to the Veterans Court’s factual determinations or its application of law to fact. 38 U.S.C. § 7292(d)(2); see also Wanless, 618 F.3d at 1336. It should be noted that the scope of the Veterans Court’s jurisdiction presents a legal question within CAFC jurisdiction to review. See Goss v. McDonough, 122 F.4th 1332, 1336 (Fed. Cir. 2024). The interpretation of the contents of a claim for benefits is a factual issue over which CAFC does not have jurisdiction.

Veterans Law

Thomas J. Kniffen, Retired Attorney at Law

New Address Law Office of Thomas J. Kniffen

43 W. 43rd Street, Suite 86 New York, NY 10036

Law Office of Thomas J. Kniffen

Veterans Law and Appellate Litigator

Represents Veterans and Dependents before the U.S. Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims (CAVC) and U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit (CAFC).

20 years experience – Also, U.S. Air Force Veteran

Tom@kniffenlaw.com – 646.343.7785

NOW ACCEPTING NEW CLIENTS

VA Adds New Cancers – Service Connection to Presumptives

On April 26, VA announced the addition of nine rare respiratory cancers to the list of presumed service-connected disabilities due to exposure to fine particulate matter for Veterans who served any amount of time in

• Afghanistan, Djibouti, Syria or Uzbekistan during the Persian Gulf War, from September 19, 2001, to the present, or
• The Southwest Asia theater of operations from August 2, 1990, to the present.

VA is taking a new approach to making decisions on presumptives, one that takes all available science into account, with one goal in mind – getting today’s Veterans, and Vets in the decades ahead – the benefits they deserve, as fast as possible.

VA identified, through a focused review of scientific and medical evidence, a biological plausibility between airborne hazards, specifically particulate matter, and carcinogensis of the respiratory tract; the unique circumstances of these rare cancers warrant a presumption of service connection.

Veterans and survivors who had claims previously denied for any of the below respiratory cancers are encouraged to file a supplemental claim for benefits;

• Squamous cell carcinoma of the larynx;
• Squamous cell carcinoma of the trachea;
• Adenocarcinoma of the trachea;
• Salivary gland-type tumors of the trachea;
• Adenosquamous carcinoma of the lung;
• Large cell carcinoma of the lung;
• Salivary gland-type tumors of the lung;
• Sarcomatoid carcinoma of the lung and;
• Typical and atypical carcinoid of the lung.

VA will contact impacted Veterans and survivors to inform them about their eligibility and it will provide information on how to apply.

2022 Burn Pit Benefits From Congress

Senate leaders on May 18, 2022 announced an agreement to pass broad military toxic exposure legislation later in the summer of 2022 setting the path for millions of veterans exposed to burn pit smoke and other battlefield toxins to receive more medical care and disability benefits in coming years.

See https://www.veterans.senate.gov/2022/5/breaking-tester-moran-announce-bipartisan-agreement-on-historic-toxic-exposure-legislation

VA Extends The Presumptive Period for Gulf War Veterans to December 31, 2026

Effective February 3, 2022, VA extended to December 31. 2026 the presumptive period for

Gulf War Veterans. https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/FR-2022-02-03/pdf/2022-02176.pdf

VA Reporting of Debt

New Threshold for Reporting VA Debts to Consumer Reporting Agencies

AGENCY: Department of Veterans Affairs.

ACTION: Final rule

Click to access 2022-01496.pdf

SUMMARY: The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) amended its regulations regarding

the conditions by which VA benefits debts or medical debts are reported to consumer

reporting agencies (CRA). This new VA Regulation is effective March 4, 2022. Please see

above the VA new Regulation.

PTSD Therapy Update

Written Exposure Therapy shows effectiveness in routine care of PTSD. Written Exposure Therapy for PTSD (WET) was designed as a 5-session, trauma-focused treatment that does not require homework between sessions. The treatment involves writing detailed accounts of a traumatic experience and its impact; a preliminary VA study validates its usefulness. See VA’s Discussion:

https://www.ptsd.va.gov/publications/ctu_docs/ctu_v15n6.pdf