Henderson, Authorized Representative of Henderson, Deceased v. Shinseki

Summary

The Supreme Court held that the 120-day deadline in 38 U.S.C. Sec. 7266(a) for filing a notice of appeal with the Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims is not jurisdictional. Applying Arbaugh's clear-indication approach, the Court found no clear evidence that Congress intended jurisdictional consequences: the provision's text does not speak in jurisdictional terms, its placement in the VJRA's 'Procedure' subchapter suggests a claim-processing rule, and the uniquely pro-claimant design of the veterans' benefits system, reinforced by the longstanding canon construing veterans' benefits provisions in beneficiaries' favor, counsels against the harsh consequences of the jurisdictional label. The Court rejected the Government's contention that Bowles categorically renders all statutory appeal deadlines jurisdictional, noting that Bowles concerned appeals from one court to another and that all potentially analogous precedents involved Article III rather than Article I review. The Federal Circuit's contrary judgment was reversed and the case remanded, with the equitable-tolling question expressly reserved.