Mandamus GRANTED to this Class Action case!-CAVC

[Berta]

 

As you all know veterans can become a class ,and by certification,can file a class Action case against the VA. (Monk V. Wilkie- available here)

Some veterans sure took heed on that recent and stunning decision and won this:

 

"UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS FOR VETERANS CLAIMS NO. 17-4361 JAMES A. GODSEY, JR., ET AL., PETITIONERS,"

In part:(I only put the conclusion here- have not had time to read it thoroughly- but -are you a member of this class? This is what veterans have to do,in my opinion, to get better C & P exams- I wish I could file a class action on that basis for veterans- but I cant because I am not a member of the class-  because I am not a veteran)

 

"VI. CONCLUSION Upon consideration of the foregoing, it is ORDERED that the class proposed by the petitioners is modified consistent with this decision. It is further ORDERED that, pursuant to Rule 23(c)(1), the following class is certified for purposes of this petition: All VA benefits claimants who filed a Substantive Appeal at least 18 months or more prior to the date of this order and who are waiting for VA to initiate pre-certification review of their cases. It is further ORDERED that, pursuant to Rule 23(g), petitioners' counsel is appointed as class counsel.

It is further ORDERED that, pursuant to Rule 23(g), petitioners' counsel is appointed as class counsel. It is further 19 ORDERED that the petition is granted in part. The Secretary shall conduct precertification review of all cases that fit within the class definition, and for each class member, within 120 days after the date of this order, either (1) certify his or her case, or (2) affirmatively initiate development or adjudication activities necessary for certification or resolution at the RO. It is further ORDERED that, within 60 days of the date of this order, the Secretary file with the Court a status update, which includes (1) the names and VA claims numbers for all members of the class; (2) the number of cases in the class that are still awaiting pre-certification review; (3) the number of cases in the class that have been processed in compliance with this order—i.e., certified or afforded additional development and/or adjudication by the RO following pre-certification review; and (3) any other information the Secretary deems relevant to his compliance with the Court order. The Court may subsequently order further status updates as necessary. See FED. R. CIV. P. 23(d). DATED: June 13, 2019 PER CURIAM."

https://efiling.uscourts.cavc.gov/cmecf/servlet/TransportRoom?servlet=ShowDoc&dls_id=01205907937&caseId=97334&dktType=dktPublic

There is One dissenting opinion added.

(PS -This case holds a great template for Class Action certification, for any veterans who consider doing something like this.

This is BIG!

[Berta]

To add, counsel for petitioners has changed-

"NOTICE TO WITHDRAW APPEARANCE OF CHRISTOPHER HIGBY AS COUNSEL FOR PETITIONERS In accordance with Rule 46(b)(1)(D) of the Court’s Rules of Practice & Procedure, Petitioners respectfully request that the Court withdraw the appearance of Christopher Higby as counsel for Petitioners. In support of this Notice, the undersigned states as follows: 1. On November 15, 2017, Christopher Higby entered an appearance in this case on behalf of Petitioners. 2. As of June 7, 2019, Christopher Higby will no longer be employed by Covington & Burling LLP and therefore will no longer be counsel to Petitioners. 3. Petitioners will continue to be represented by lead counsel Ranganath Sudarshan and the law firm of Covington & Burling LLP."

(Source above US CAVC full case docket)

As the court says this is granted in part and you have to read the full case and conclusion to understand why.

I wonder if the VA will attempt to somehow fight this further- hope not-

If you are in this class, it looks to me that so far you have to do nothing-under # 19, yet.....

Then again VAROs were supposed to contact all veterans or survivors who fell under Footnote One Nehmer 2010 ....and they didn't. Many here, and me too, were never advised we had Footnote One claims-

good thing we are smarter than the VA thinks!

 

Edited June 17, 2019 by Berta

[broncovet]

I like it.  It "could" affect me.  I was given a c and p exam by a doctor who admitted no sleep medicine experience, and she opined that my sleep apnea was not related to service.  (Chris Attig would call it a JUNK science exam, with a doc with no sleep expertise giving a negative opinion that VA gives the doc a presumptive that she knew what she was doing, when she did not.  C and P examiners are supposed to be "expert witnesses" to the court, and this doc was incompetent to be an expert witness on the issue of sleep apnea.  )   I disputed the doctors expertise, but VA had the MF factor and lost my dispute..as usual.   

I have not gotten an IMO to refute this exam for a very specific reason.  Im currently in appeals for SMC S, and, if awarded, I will get an earlier effective date than the date I could have gotten OSA awarded.  

 

[Buck52]

broncovet Quote:

'' I disputed the doctors expertise, but VA had the MF factor and lost my dispute..as usual.''  

  The VA sure loses your evidence quite a lot, you ever think about sending them a double whammy , I mean send your evidence to them more than twice and to two  or three different claims  locations.

  if you send it to enough VA established claims center maybe  one place won't lose  your records of evidence

IF THEY ARE STUPID ENOUGH TO TREAT EACH ONE AS A CLAIM  IF YOU GET APPROVE  ,THEN ACCEPT THAT ONE AND HAVE THESE OTHER ADDED ON CLAIMS CANCELED OUT.

You need to teach them to not loses your paper work  LoL......

[broncovet]

Im not unique..Va loves to lose more people's evidence than "just mine".  Lots of Vets simply dont know it...they dont check the claims file, and dont know why they get denied or lowballed.  I mean..it was Berta who mentioned the "mystery force" where VA loses our probative evidence.  

I will admit to not being particularly well organized enought to keep a copy of every piece of paper I send to VA.  However, I am getting better at that.  

Im not unique to that, either.  The military gave me a copy of my service records when I got out.  Did I keep them? No.  Do most Vets?  Probably not.  This is, in part, why its so difficult to get our benefits.  

I have no idea where they are at.  Probably in a landfill somewhere.  

[vetquest]

I am with broncovet about lost medical records.  I have had mine lost several times, they strangely appeared when I went to the BVA.

[Buck52]

Oh I am not saying they don't lose your records , but just seems odd they lose them on some veterans more than others.

I don't think they lost mine I just couldn't get them or couldn't get them as they said they search and search for them and even they could not find some of them  that I needed to prove my claim with.

  luckly for me I had sent them my recollection of the dates and locations /operations I was in and they checked this all out with a fine tooth comb  and finally made a decision in my favor.