Frankel v. Derwinski
United States Court of Veteran Appeals
1 Vet. App. 23 (1990)
- Written by Sarah Hoffman, JD
Facts
Cleda V. Frankel (plaintiff) and David Frankel, a veteran, were married in two separate ceremonies, a civil ceremony and a religious ceremony. Years later, Cleda and David divorced. Later, David died. Cleda subsequently applied to the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) (defendant) for veteran death-pension benefits. The Board of Veterans’ Appeals (the board) denied Cleda’s claim. Cleda appealed to the United States Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims (Veterans Court). On appeal, Cleda argued that although the civil marriage had been dissolved by divorce, the religious marriage had not been dissolved, and therefore Cleda was entitled to death-pension benefits. On appeal, the Veterans Court considered whether the appeal could have been decided through summary decision by a single judge as opposed to review by a panel of judges.
Rule of Law
Issue
Holding and Reasoning (Nebeker, C.J.)
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