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George v. McDonough
| Docket No. | Op. Below | Argument | Opinion | Vote | Author | Term |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 21-234 | Fed. Cir. | Apr 19, 2022 | Jun 15, 2022 | 6-3 | Barrett | OT 2021 |
Holding: The invalidation of a Department of Veterans Affairs regulation after a veteran’s benefits decision becomes final cannot support a claim for collateral relief permitting revision of that decision based on “clear and unmistakable error” under 38 U.S.C. §§ 5109A and 7111.
Judgment: Affirmed, 6-3, in an opinion by Justice Barrett on June 15, 2022. Justice Sotomayor filed a dissenting opinion. Justice Gorsuch filed a dissenting opinion, in which Justice Breyer joined, and in which Justice Sotomayor joined as to all but Part II-C.
SCOTUSblog Coverage
- In far cry from usual textualism, court rejects veteran’s attempt to reopen a benefits denial based on legal error (Anita Krishnakumar, June 17, 2022)
- Announcement of opinions for Wednesday, June 15 (complete) (Angie Gou, June 15, 2022)
- Justices invoke practical considerations, legislative expectations, and more in veterans’ benefits case (Anita Krishnakumar, April 21, 2022)
- Justices to consider scope of “clear and unmistakable error” review of Veterans Affairs decisions (Anita Krishnakumar, April 18, 2022)
- April argument calendar features cases on Trump-era asylum policy and praying football coach (Amy Howe, March 15, 2022)
- Court will take up five new cases, including lawsuit from football coach who wanted to pray on the field (Amy Howe, January 14, 2022)
- Blockbuster watch: Affirmative action, same-sex weddings, and other big relists (John Elwood, January 12, 2022)
- North Carolina’s voter-ID lawsuit, racial bias in juries and a veteran’s disability claim (Andrew Hamm, September 3, 2021)
| Date | Proceedings and Orders |
|---|---|
| Aug 13 2021 | Petition for a writ of certiorari filed. (Response due September 16, 2021) |
| Aug 24 2021 | Motion to extend the time to file a response from September 16, 2021 to October 18, 2021, submitted to The Clerk. |
| Aug 25 2021 | Motion to extend the time to file a response is granted and the time is extended to and including October 18, 2021. |
| Sep 15 2021 | Brief amicus curiae of Jeremy C. Doerre filed. |
| Sep 16 2021 | Brief amicus curiae of Military-Veterans Advocacy filed. |
| Oct 05 2021 | Motion to extend the time to file a response from October 18, 2021 to November 17, 2021, submitted to The Clerk. |
| Oct 06 2021 | Motion to extend the time to file a response is granted and the time is further extended to and including November 17, 2021. |
| Nov 08 2021 | Motion to extend the time to file a response from November 17, 2021 to December 8, 2021, submitted to The Clerk. |
| Nov 09 2021 | Motion to extend the time to file a response is granted and the time is further extended to and including December 8, 2021. |
| Dec 08 2021 | Brief of respondent Denis R. McDonough, Secretary of Veterans Affairs in opposition filed. |
| Dec 20 2021 | Reply of petitioner Kevin R. George filed. (Distributed) |
| Dec 22 2021 | DISTRIBUTED for Conference of 1/7/2022. |
| Jan 10 2022 | DISTRIBUTED for Conference of 1/14/2022. |
| Jan 14 2022 | Petition GRANTED. |
| Jan 25 2022 | Motion to dispense with printing the joint appendix filed by petitioner Kevin R. George. |
| Feb 22 2022 | Motion to dispense with printing the joint appendix filed by petitioner GRANTED. |
| Feb 28 2022 | Brief of petitioner Kevin R. George filed. |
| Mar 03 2022 | Amicus brief of Disabled American Veterans not accepted for filing. (March 03, 2022--Corrected version to be submitted) |
| Mar 03 2022 | Brief amicus curiae of Disabled American Veterans (3/3/2022) filed. |
| Mar 04 2022 | Brief amicus curiae of National Law School Veterans Clinic Consortium filed. |
| Mar 07 2022 | Brief amicus curiae of Military-Veterans Advocacy and Legal Aid Foundation of Los Angeles filed. |
| Mar 07 2022 | Brief amici curiae of Senators Ted Cruz and Mike Lee filed. |
| Mar 07 2022 | Brief amici curiae of National Veterans Legal Services Program, et al. filed. |
| Mar 07 2022 | Brief amici curiae of Swords to Plowshares and Vietnam Veterans of America filed. |
| Mar 15 2022 | ARGUMENT SET FOR Tuesday, April 19, 2022. |
| Mar 16 2022 | Record requested from the U.S.C.A. Federal Circuit. |
| Mar 18 2022 | The record from the U.S.C.A. Federal Circuit is electronic and located on Pacer. |
| Mar 23 2022 | CIRCULATED |
| Mar 28 2022 | The record received from the U.S. Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims has been electronically filed. |
| Mar 30 2022 | Brief of Denis R. McDonough, Secretary of Veterans Affairs not accepted for filing. (April 01, 2022--Corrected brief and PDF to be submitted.) |
| Mar 30 2022 | Brief of respondent Denis R. McDonough, Secretary of Veterans Affairs filed. (Distributed) |
| Apr 08 2022 | Reply of petitioner Kevin R. George filed. (Distributed) |
| Apr 19 2022 | Argued. For petitioner: Melanie L. Bostwick, Washington, D. C. For respondent: Anthony A. Yang, Assistant to the Solicitor General, Department of Justice, Washington, D. C. |
| Jun 15 2022 | Adjudged to be AFFIRMED. Barrett, J., delivered the opinion of the Court, in which Roberts, C. J., and Thomas, Alito, Kagan, and Kavanaugh, JJ., joined. Sotomayor, J., filed a dissenting opinion. Gorsuch, J., filed a dissenting opinion, in which Breyer, J., joined, and in which Sotomayor, J., joined as to all but Part II–C. |
| Jul 18 2022 | JUDGMENT ISSUED |
