Instructions for Unrepresented Appellants

• Legal Form Number: 8(a)
• Court: United States Court of Appeals For Veterans Claims
• Section: Court of Appeals for Veteran Claims

UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS FOR VETERANS CLAIMS

625 Indiana Avenue, NW, Suite 900

Washington, DC 20004-2950

Website: www.uscourts.cavc.gov

Email: self-rep@uscourts.cavc.gov

INSTRUCTIONS FOR UNREPRESENTED APPELLANTS

First Steps

The first steps to having t he Court of Appeals for

Veterans Claims (the Court) consider your case are to

(1) file a Notice of Appeal (Form 1) from a Board of

Veterans' Appeals (BVA) decision, and (2) pay the $50

filing fee or request a waiver of that fee by completing a

Declaration of Financial Hardship (Form 4). These

forms ar e available from the Court's website at

www.uscourts.cavc.gov/forms_fees.php. On the Notice

of Appeal form you may choose to receive future

notifications from the Court via ema il or regular mail

delivered by the U.S. Postal S ervice (paper mail).

Once the Court receives your Notice of Appeal, we give

your case a case number and create a case docket

where all activity in your case is recorded. The notice of

docketing shows t hat information. Put your case

number – not your VA claims file number or your social

security number – on every paper you send to the Court

so we can match it with your case. Type or hand-print

your papers so we can read them. If we can't read your

filing, we will send it back to you and that will delay

your case.

You are referred to as the appellant. The other pa rty in

your appeal is the Secretary of Veterans Affairs, also

called "the Secretary" or the appellee. The Secretary is

represented by attorneys from t he VA Office of General

Counsel (VA counsel). As your case moves along, we

will se nd a notice or an order telling you what to do

next. Pay attentio n and do what it tells you. You must

follow the Court's Rules of Practice and Procedure

(Rules) that are posted on the Court's website at

www.uscourts.cavc.gov/rules_of_practice.php

About the Court

The Court is NOT part of VA. The Court does not

receive new evidence, hold trials, or award money

damages. It reviews o nly what the BVA did in your case,

based on the evidence and the briefs. In a few cases,

usually only when an appellant has a representative, the

Court will schedule an "oral argu ment" and the Judges

will ask the parties questions about the case.

Finding the Law

The statutes and regulations pertaining to veterans

benefits can be found in title 38 of the U.S. Code, and

title 38 of the Code of Federal Regulations. These are

available in most public libraries and online. The Court's

opinions are available in West's Veterans Appeals

Reporter and on the Court's web site at

www.uscourts.cavc.gov/orders_and_opinions.php.

Change of Address

If you move or change your pho ne number or email

address while your case is at the Court, send a no tice of

your new information to the Court and to VA counsel.

If you don't, and you miss a deadline because mail went

to your old address, the Court may dismiss your appeal

(terminate it without considering it).

Representation

The Secretary of Veterans Affairs is always represented

by an attorne y from the VA, who will argue VA's side.

You may represent yourself, although your side may be

better presented if you are also represented. When we

docket your appeal, your name and address become

public, so lawyers may write to you offering to represent

you – some for a fee, and some without charge. If you

are interested in getting a representative, you may also

review a list of eligible attor neys and non-attorney

representatives on the Court's websi te at

www.uscourts.cavc .gov/public_list. php or you may

contact another attor ney you may know. Your

representative does not have to be from the state where

you live. The Court won't recommend or appoint anyone

to represent you. You ma y ask an attorney to repr esent

you or help you with your case for free (pro bono)

through the Veterans Consortium Pro Bono Program at

www.vetsprobono.org or 855-446-9678.

The Record Before the Agency

Not later than 60 days after the notice of docketing has

been sent to you, the Secretar y will: (1) copy all

materials that were contained in the claims file on the

date the BVA issued the decision that you are appealing

and copy any other material from the record before the

Secretary and the BVA (collectively referred to as "the

agency") relevant to the issues listed in the BVA

decision on appeal (Note: material submitted after the

BVA decision on appeal generally will not be included

in the record before the agency); (2) prepare a list of any

record material that cannot be duplicated; (3) assemble

and paginate those materials to create the record before

the agency; (4) provide a copy of the record before the

agency to you; and (5) file a notice with the Court

certifying that the record before the agency has been

served on you.