Landmark Ruling Allowing VA Class Actions Affirmed by Fed. Cir.

Class actions remain a viable option for veterans who wish to challenge systemic delays in VA claims processing, although hundreds of thousands of veterans awaiting resolution of pending disability claims don’t have enough in common to pursue a class action against Veterans Affairs Secretary Robert Wilkie, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit said Tuesday.

Judge Pauline Newman authored the court’s decision affirming a landmark holding by a divided U.S. Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims, which permitted veterans to use class actions to challenge Department of Veterans Affairs policies for the first time in 2018.

Judge Jimmie ...