The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit assesses the equitable powers of a legislative court: the Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims.

This guest post was authored by Joel Smith, a 3L at the University of Missouri School of Law, with support from the team at the Mizzou Law Veterans Clinic.

Why is there a post about a veterans law case on a patent law blog? The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit (the “Federal Circuit”), of course! Like patent office cases, when decisions of the Veterans Administration (“VA”) are appealed to the federal court system, the cases are not heard in your everyday district courts, but instead in everyone’s favorite court with nationwide jurisdiction. Currently pending before the en banc Federal Circuit is Taylor v. McDonough, No. 2019-2211 (Fed. Cir.).

The case involves the plight of Bruce R. Taylor, a Vietnam era Army veteran seeking compensation for disabilities resulting from his service. Before serving two tours overseas, Mr. Taylor volunteered to serve his country in a unique fashion—as a test subject. In 1969, the Army sought soldiers on which it would test toxic chemicals such as nerve gas. The Army’s purpose was to learn how its soldiers would function when exposed to agents that combatants might experience in service.

Continue reading The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit assesses the equitable powers of a legislative court: the Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims. at Patently-O.