After nearly eight years of litigation, the Antonin Scalia Law School’s Mason Veterans and Servicemembers Legal Clinic (M-VETS) obtained a favorable decision from the Board of Veterans’ Appeals (BVA) on June 3, 2026, granting a Certificate of Eligibility (COE) for a Department of Veterans Affairs (DVA) home loan guaranty benefits to a retired Virginia Army National Guard (VAANG) veteran who had been wrongly denied that benefit by the DVA.
The veteran enlisted in the VAANG, sustained a right ankle injury during initial training, and was discharged before completing his service commitment. He later applied for a COE for a DVA-backed home loan, a major financial benefit for veterans, but was denied. The DVA denied the COE because the veteran did not meet the six-year service requirement under 38 U.S.C. § 3701 and 3702, as his discharge documents did not indicate that his separation was due to a service-connected injury. Federal law provides an exception for veterans discharged for such disabilities (38 U.S.C. § 3701(b)(5)(A); 38 C.F.R. § 3.315(b)), but this was not reflected in his paperwork despite his injury being service-connected.
M-VETS filed an initial appeal on the veteran’s behalf in 2018. What followed was nearly eight years of evidence collection, brief drafting, client preparation, and persistent advocacy before the DVA and, ultimately, the BVA. M-VETS Director Timothy M. MacArthur explained the difficulty this created: “The DVA initially denied the COE request because the veteran did not serve for the statutorily required six years in the VAANG; however, there is an exception to this requirement if the veteran had been separated from service for a service-connected disability. While our veteran was service-connected for his injury, the discharge paperwork did not indicate that he was discharged from service for this injury, which created a challenge for our client and the Clinic.”
When the matter was scheduled for a personal appearance before the BVA in August 2024, former Student Advisor (SA) Danny Jenkins presented oral arguments and evidence on behalf of the veteran under the supervision of Director MacArthur. This hearing was the result of collective efforts, with numerous M-VETS SAs gathering evidence, preparing briefs, advising the client, and supporting case strategy over the years.
On June 3, 2026, the BVA granted the veteran’s claim in full. The Board found that the exception to the service duration requirement applied and awarded the COE. The decision brought to a close a claim that had been pending for nearly eight years.
On the result and effort throughout the years, MacArthur provided, “Danny did a great job arguing the motion and presenting evidence during the hearing. The DVA benefits process is paternalistic, which is invaluable for allowing our students to gain practical experience in a non-adversarial setting while providing valuable pro bono services to our clients. I want to thank our client for allowing Danny to represent him at the hearing and for the opportunity to learn from this extremely valuable experience. I want to also thank the previous Student Advisors who diligently worked on this matter and provided the foundation for conducting the BVA hearing and this fantastic result.” Regarding the assistance received from M-VETS, the veteran stated, “Thank you so much for the help all this time!”
M-VETS enables Scalia Law students to assist active-duty members of the armed forces, their families, and veterans in a wide variety of administrative, litigation, and non-litigation matters, including appeals of denials of Department of Veterans Affairs disability compensation and educational claims, representation before the Board of Veterans’ Appeals and Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims, applications for discharge upgrades and military records correction before the Boards for Correction of Military Records and Discharge Review Boards.