## Facts

- Luther Williams, Jr., a pro se veteran, sought service connection for multiple medical and psychiatric conditions and a dental disability.
- The Board of Veterans’ Appeals denied several claims as not well grounded, denied the dental claim, found two 1979 rating decisions were not timely appealed, and found no new and material evidence for certain previously denied claims.
- Williams appealed to the Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims.
- After enactment of the Veterans Claims Assistance Act of 2000 (VCAA), the Secretary moved for partial remand; Williams opposed.
- The Veterans Court vacated the Board’s decision and remanded the case for readjudication in light of the VCAA, allowing Williams to submit additional evidence and argument on remand.
- Williams appealed the Veterans Court’s remand order to the Federal Circuit, arguing the Veterans Court should have decided the merits without remand.
- The Secretary moved to dismiss in the Federal Circuit for lack of jurisdiction, asserting the Veterans Court’s remand order was not final.

## Issues

1. Whether the Federal Circuit has jurisdiction under 38 U.S.C. § 7292 to review a Veterans Court order vacating a Board decision and remanding for readjudication under the VCAA.
2. Whether such a remand order is “sufficiently final” to be appealable.

## Decision

- The Federal Circuit granted the Secretary’s motion to dismiss.
- The court held the Veterans Court’s remand order was not sufficiently final to permit appellate review.
- The appeal was dismissed for lack of jurisdiction.

## Legal Principles

- Even when a jurisdictional statute does not expressly require a “final decision,” appellate jurisdiction is generally constrained by a strong presumption against piecemeal review.
- Routine remand orders that contemplate further agency proceedings and do not finally resolve the claimant’s entitlement are ordinarily not appealable.
- A Veterans Court order that vacates and remands for readjudication under a new statutory standard is nonfinal when it leaves all claims unresolved and anticipates additional evidence, argument, and adjudication.
- Any challenge to the propriety of such a remand can be reviewed after completion of remand proceedings and issuance of a later final decision.
- No exception to the finality requirement applies when the remand does not conclusively decide a separable legal issue that would be effectively unreviewable after final judgment.

## Conclusion

The Federal Circuit lacked jurisdiction to review the Veterans Court’s order vacating and remanding for VCAA readjudication because the order did not finally dispose of any claims and contemplated further proceedings, making it not sufficiently final for appeal under 38 U.S.C. § 7292.


Williams v. Principi, 275 F.3d 1361 (Fed. Cir. 2002)