Morton v. West
United States Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims
12 Vet. App. 477 (1999)
- Written by Carolyn Strutton, JD
Facts
Jack Morton (plaintiff) served in the United States Army from 1943 to 1946. Decades later, Morton filed a claim with the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) (defendant) for various physical disabilities that he claimed were connected to his service. His claims were denied, and Morton appealed to the Board of Veterans’ Appeals (BVA). The BVA found no evidence supporting any of Morton’s claims, holding in essence that Morton’s claims were not well grounded. Morton appealed the BVA decision to the United States Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims but failed to assert that his claims were well grounded, essentially conceding that they were not. Morton instead based his appeal on the contention that the VA was required to assist him in the development of his claims, even though he had not met the statutory requirement of first bringing a well-grounded, plausible claim. Morton claimed that certain VA regulations, manuals, and policy statements supported this contention.
Rule of Law
Issue
Holding and Reasoning (Farley, J.)
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