Appeal:
“Whether the United States Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims (Veterans Court) erred in holding that it could certify a class that includes veterans over whom it lacks jurisdiction.”
Cross-Appeal:
1. “Whether the Veterans Court has the authority to certify an injunctive class that includes veterans whose disability benefits claims have been or will be denied pursuant to a regulatory methodology that the Veterans Court found to be unjustified, where the class representative’s claim was properly presented and exhausted.”
2. “Whether the Veterans Court misinterpreted equitable tolling and waiver of exhaustion standards so as to exclude from the certified class veterans who had not timely appealed past agency denials.”
Appeal:
“By certifying a class that includes veterans who had not received a Board decision, the Veterans Court exceeded its jurisdiction. We accordingly vacate the court’s class certification and remand for further proceedings.”
Cross-Appeal:
“The Veterans Court rightly declined to equitably toll the appeal period for claimants who had not timely appealed their denied claims since none of the claimants had alleged, let alone established, the requisite due diligence in pursuing their rights. . . . Thus, should the Veterans Court choose to reconsider on remand whether class certification is appropriate, the court shall confine the proposed class to include only Palomares veterans who had timely appealed, or were still able to timely appeal, Board decisions denying their radiation exposure claims.”
