This order comes from a consolidated case, Jones (CAVC 25-3797) and Hawkins (CAVC 25-4538), involving two veterans who each received a letter from the Board of Veterans' Appeals telling them their Notice of Disagreement (NOD) was not filed within one year of their rating decision. The letters invited each veteran "to respond if they wanted the Board to issue timeliness decisions." Neither veteran responded to the Board. Instead, both appealed the letters directly to the Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims, and the Secretary moved to dismiss both appeals for lack of jurisdiction.
The Court agreed with the Secretary and dismissed both appeals. It explained that "Board letters are generally beyond the Court's review authority," because the Court's jurisdiction is limited by statute to "timely appeals from final Board decisions." A letter merely telling a veteran that an NOD looks untimely, and inviting a response, is not itself a final adjudicatory decision — it's a heads-up giving the veteran a chance to contest the timeliness finding before the Board actually rules on it. The Court noted a narrow exception exists (as in a prior case, Cardoza v. McDonough, where a similar letter was treated as final), but concluded that exception did not apply to either Jones's or Hawkins's letters, so it lacked jurisdiction to review them.
For Mr. Jones specifically, the facts show his RO denied several claims in March 2020, he filed an NOD in March 2025 arguing the RO's notice back then was so inadequate that the 2020 decision never became final, and he asked the Board to remand for corrected notice. The Board's March 2025 letter told him it "could not docket the appeal because the NOD wasn't timely" but advised he could request a "good cause" timeliness determination — an option he did not pursue before appealing.
The practical lesson: if you get a Board letter saying your NOD was untimely, that letter is not something you can appeal to the CAVC. You must respond to the Board and ask for an actual timeliness decision (including any good-cause argument for late filing) before there is anything final to appeal.
If you currently have a similar Board letter sitting unanswered, respond to it now, explain any good-cause reason your NOD was late, and wait for the Board's actual timeliness decision before considering a court appeal.
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