Congressional Directory for the 117th Congress (2021-2022), October 2022.
[Pages 906-910]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]
UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS
FOR VETERANS CLAIMS
625 Indiana Avenue, NW., Suite 900, Washington, DC 20004
phone (202) 501-5970
MARGARET BARTLEY, chief judge; was nominated to the United States
Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims by President Barack Obama on June
22, 2011, confirmed by the U.S. Senate on May 24, 2012, appointed by the
President on June 25, 2012, and took the judicial oath on June 28, 2012,
for a term of fifteen years. She became Chief Judge of the Veterans
Court on December 4, 2019. For over 17 years prior to her appointment,
Chief Judge Bartley served as a veterans advocate, working as staff
attorney and then senior staff attorney for National Veterans Legal
Services Program (NVLSP), a veterans service organization. In that
capacity, she advised and trained staff and service officers for The
American Legion, Military Order of the Purple Heart, Vietnam Veterans of
America, and other veterans service organizations and State departments
of veterans affairs, on issues related to veterans benefits and veterans
preference in Federal employment. She also represented veterans and
survivors of veterans in their pursuit of VA benefits before the USCAVC
and the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit. From 2004 to
2012, Chief Judge Bartley served as editor of the NVLSP veterans' law
quarterly, The Veterans Advocate. She also testified before Congress
concerning federal agency failure to apply veterans preference laws and
appeared on behalf of amici curiae in several significant veterans
preference cases. From 2005 until her appointment to the bench, Chief
Judge Bartley also served as Director of Outreach and Education for the
Veterans Consortium Pro Bono Program. In that capacity, she organized
nationwide training classes for lawyers interested in providing pro bono
representation to veterans and their survivors before the USCAVC. Prior
to her career as a veterans advocate, Chief Judge Bartley served as a
judicial law clerk to the late Judge Jonathan R. Steinberg of the
USCAVC. Chief Judge Bartley earned a Bachelor of Arts degree, cum laude,
from Pennsylvania State University in 1981 and a juris doctor degree,
cum laude, from the American University Washington College of Law in
1993. Aside from her many articles on veterans law published in The
Veterans Advocate, Chief Judge Bartley is co-author, co-editor, or
contributing author of several other articles and publications,
including the Veterans Benefits Manual (LexisNexis) (co-author 1999-
2010, co-editor 2011-12); American Veterans' and Servicemembers'
Survival Guide (Veterans for America, 2008) (contributing author); VA
Benefits for Low-Income Veterans (Clearinghouse Review, Sept-Oct 2006)
(co-author); VA's Obligations Toward Claimants: Analysis of the
Veterans Claims Assistance Act of 2000 (Clearinghouse Review, July-
August 2001) (co-author); The Elderlaw Portfolio Series: Veterans
Benefits for the Elderly (Little, Brown and Company, 1996) (co-author);
and Consideration of Pain and Other Factors in Rating Disabilities
(Clearinghouse Review, July-August 1996) (co-author).
CORAL WONG-PIETSCH, judge; born in Waterloo, IA, Judge Pietsch has
a distinguished career in public service, both in the military and as a
civilian. She was commissioned in the U.S. Army Judge Advocate General's
Corps and served six years on active duty. Judge Pietsch continued her
service in the U.S. Army Reserve and rose to the rank of Brigadier
General. She became the first woman to be promoted to the rank of
Brigadier General in the U.S. Army Judge Advocate General's Corps and
the first woman of Asian ancestry to be promoted to Brigadier General in
the Army. Until her appointment to the bench, Judge Pietsch held the
position of Senior Attorney and Special Assistant at Headquarters, U.S.
Army Pacific located in Honolulu, Hawaii. In this position, she provided
and managed legal services in support of the U.S. Army Pacific's mission
to train Army Forces for military operations and peacetime engagements
aimed at promoting regional stability. As part of the 2007 ``surge'' in
Iraq, Judge Pietsch volunteered as a Department of Defense civilian to
deploy to Iraq for a year, where she was seconded to the U.S. Department
of State to serve as the Deputy Rule of Law Coordinator for the Baghdad
Provincial Reconstruction Team. During her deployment to Iraq, Judge
Pietsch assisted with numerous civil society projects involving a
variety of Rule of Law partners, including the Iraqi Jurist Union, Iraqi
Bar Association, law schools, and international rights, women's rights,
and human rights
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organizations. She evaluated and sought funding for numerous projects
aimed at building capacity within the Iraqi legal community to include
the establishment, in close collaboration with the Iraqi Bar
Association, of a Legal Aid Clinic at one of Iraq's largest detention
facilities. In 2006 Judge Pietsch was appointed by the Governor of
Hawaii to the Hawaii Civil Rights Commission where she served for seven
years. Shortly after the appointment, the Governor selected Judge
Pietsch as its Chair. Earlier in her civilian legal career, Judge
Pietsch had been appointed a Deputy Attorney General for the State of
Hawaii, advising the State Department of Health, State Department of
Agriculture, and the State Criminal History Records Division. Judge
Pietsch's academic degrees include a bachelor of arts, master of arts,
and a juris doctor degree. She was also a Senior Executive Fellow at the
Harvard University Kennedy School of Government, is a graduate of the
Defense Leadership and Management Program, and a graduate of the Army
War College. Her awards and decorations include the Distinguished
Service Medal, Legion of Merit, Meritorious Service Medal, Joint Service
Commendation Medal, Decoration for Exceptional Civilian Service, the
Meritorious Civilian Service Medal, Superior Civilian Performance Medal,
and the Global War on Terrorism Medal. She has been the recipient of the
Organization of Chinese Americans Pioneer Award, the Hawaii Women
Lawyers Attorney of the Year Award, the Honolulu YWCA Achievement in
Leadership Award, the Catholic University Alumni Achievement Award, the
Federal Executive Board Award for Excellence, the U.S. Army Pacific
Community Service Award and recognized for lifetime accomplishments by
the Women Veterans Igniting the Spirit of Entrepreneurship. Judge
Pietsch is admitted to the bars of the United States Supreme Court, the
Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, U.S. District Court of the District of
Hawaii, State Bar of Hawaii, State Bar of Iowa, and the United States
Court of Appeals for the Armed Forces; nominated by President Barack
Obama and subsequently appointed a Judge of the U.S. Court of Appeals
for Veterans Claims on May 24, 2012 and sworn in June 2012.
WILLIAM S. GREENBERG, judge; Judge Greenberg was a partner of
McCarter and English, LLP. He initially joined the firm as an associate
following a judicial clerkship in 1968, then returned as a partner in
1993. The majority of his career has involved litigation in Federal and
state courts. Judge Greenberg had been a Certified Civil Trial Attorney
by the Supreme Court of New Jersey since 1983. He served as Chairman of
the Judicial and Prosecutorial Appointments Committee of the New Jersey
State Bar Association, which considers all candidates to be a judge or
prosecutor submitted by the Governor of New Jersey. He was President of
the Association of Trial Lawyers of America, New Jersey, (The New Jersey
Association for Justice) and has served as Trustee of the New Jersey
State Bar Association and of the New Jersey State Bar Foundation. He
also served as a member of the New Jersey Supreme Court Committee on the
Admission of Foreign Attorneys. He established and chaired the New
Jersey State Bar Association (public service / pro bono) program of
military legal assistance for members of the Reserve Components called
to active duty after September 11, 2001. He was a member of the New
Jersey Supreme Court Civil Practice Committee. With the approval of the
Secretary of Defense, on the recommendation of the White House, Judge
Greenberg became Chairman of the Reserve Forces Policy Board in 2009, a
Board established by the Secretary of Defense in 1951 and by Act of
Congress in 1952. On July 26, 2011, Judge Greenberg was awarded the
Secretary of Defense Medal for Outstanding Public Service, the second
highest civilian award in the Defense Department, at a public ceremony
in the Pentagon, and completed his term in August 2011. In 2006 his
Civil Trial Handbook, Volume 47 of the New Jersey Practice Series, was
published by Thomson / West. A special 20th anniversary issue was
published in 2009, to commemorate the 1989 publication of its
predecessor, Trial Handbook for New Jersey Lawyers. A retired Brigadier
General, he served as a member of the New Jersey World War II Memorial
Commission. In June 2009 he received the highest honor granted by the
New Jersey State Bar Foundation, its medal of honor for his work in
establishing the military legal assistance program, and especially in
his public service representation of soldiers at Walter Reed Army
Medical Center during their Physician Disability Hearings. His article
in the June 2007 issue of New Jersey Lawyer Magazine describes the
program in detail. He has served as special litigation counsel to the
Adjutants General Association of the United States and was special
litigation counsel pro bono to the National Guard Association of the
United States. Judge Greenberg was a Commissioner of the New Jersey
State Commission of Investigation. He also served as Assistant Counsel
to the Governor of New Jersey and as Commissioner of the New Jersey
State Scholarship Commission. Professor Greenberg served as the first
Adjunct Professor of Military Law at the Seton Hall University School of
Law. He was chosen the New Jersey Lawyer of the Year for 2009 by the New
Jersey Law Journal. He received the Distinguished Alumnus Award from the
Johns Hopkins University in 2010, and the Rutgers Law School Public
Service Award in 2010 for his work in developing and leading the efforts
to represent wounded and injured soldiers at Walter Reed. Judge
Greenberg is admitted in New Jersey, New York, and the District of
Columbia. He is a member of the bar of the Supreme Court of the United
States, and of the Third, Fourth, and Federal
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Circuits, the Southern District of New York, and the United States Court
of Appeals for the Armed Forces. Judge Greenberg is a graduate of the
Johns Hopkins University (A.B., 1964) and Rutgers University Law School
(J.D., 1967). He is married to the former Betty Kaufmann Wolf of
Pittsburgh. They have three children, Katherine of New York, Anthony of
Baltimore, and Elizabeth of New York; nominated to the United States
Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims by President Barack Obama on
November 15, 2012, confirmed by the U.S. Senate on December 21, 2012,
appointed by the President on December 27, 2012, and took the judicial
oath on December 28, 2012, for a term of fifteen years.
MICHAEL P. ALLEN, judge; Judge Allen was nominated by the President
of the United States in June 2017. He was confirmed by the U.S. Senate,
and appointed a Judge of the United States Court of Appeals for Veterans
Claims in August 2017. United States District Judge Elizabeth
Kovachevich of the Middle District of Florida administered the judicial
oath to Judge Allen on August 11, 2017. For 16 years before his judicial
appointment, Judge Allen was a tenured full professor of law at Stetson
University College of Law in Gulfport, Florida. He was also the director
of Stetson's Veterans Law Institute, and he spent four years as the
College of Law's associate dean. Judge Allen also served as a visiting
professor of law at the University of Illinois College of Law. Before
entering teaching, Judge Allen practiced law for nine years in the
litigation department of the Boston-based international law firm Ropes &
Gray. Judge Allen graduated summa cum laude from the University of
Rochester earning bachelor's degrees in American history and political
science. He received his juris doctor from Columbia Law School, where he
was a Harlan Fiske Stone Scholar during his final two years. As a
professor, Judge Allen taught courses in constitutional law, civil
procedure, federal courts, remedies, and veterans' benefits law. He has
been a prolific author, co-writing two books and more than 25 articles
and essays. Judge Allen also received numerous awards for his
scholarship and teaching including the Stetson University Award for
Excellence in Scholarship, the Brown-Dickerson Award for Excellence in
Scholarship, the Stetson University Award for Excellence in Teaching,
and the Stetson University Award for Excellence in Professionalism and
Career Development. He also received the Stetson's Golden Apple Award
for teaching and was twice named the best all-around professor. Judge
Allen was also a frequent speaker at community and professional groups
while in legal education. Among his speaking engagements were featured
roles at the judicial conferences of the Court of Appeals for Veterans
Claims and the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit.
In addition, Judge Allen testified before the Veterans' Affairs
Committees of both the U.S. Senate and the United States House of
Representatives. Before taking the bench, Judge Allen was active in
professional associations. He served on the Board of Trustees of the
Southeastern Association of Law Schools and was the Chair of the
American Association of Law Schools' sections on Remedies and New Law
Teachers. He is also active in his synagogue where, along with his wife,
he received the Shofar Award for community service. Judge Allen is
married to Debra Brown Allen and has two sons, Ben and Noah.
AMANDA L. MEREDITH, judge; Judge Meredith was nominated by the
President of the United States in June 2017. She subsequently was
confirmed by the U.S. Senate and appointed a Judge of the United States
Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims in August 2017. For more than 12
years prior to her appointment, Judge Meredith worked for the Republican
staff of the U.S. Senate Committee on Veterans' Affairs. Most recently,
she served from 2015 to 2017 as the Deputy Staff Director and General
Counsel for Chairman Johnny Isakson. She served as General Counsel from
2008 to 2015 and as Benefits Counsel from 2005 to 2008 under Ranking
Member Richard Burr and Chairman / Ranking Member Larry Craig. During
this time, she was responsible for legislative and oversight activities
regarding a wide range of veterans' issues and assisted Members of
Congress in enacting numerous laws to help improve the benefits and
services for our nation's veterans. Prior to joining the staff of the
Committee on Veterans' Affairs, Judge Meredith worked for the United
States Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims for more than seven years.
While at the Court, she served from 2004 to 2005 as the Director of the
Court's Task Force for Backlog Reduction, a team of experienced
attorneys dedicated to reducing the inventory of pending appeals. From
2000 to 2004, she was the Executive Attorney to Chief Judge Kenneth
Kramer, serving as the principal legal advisor to the Chief Judge
regarding all judicial functions; supervising the chambers law clerks;
and managing the chambers caseload. She served from 1997 to 2000 as a
judicial law clerk to Judge Kramer. Judge Meredith graduated summa cum
laude from the University at Buffalo with a Bachelor of Science degree
in accounting and graduated magna cum laude from the University at
Buffalo Law School, where she was a member of the Buffalo Law Review.
JOSEPH L. TOTH, judge; Judge Toth was nominated by the President of
the United States in June 2017. He was subsequently confirmed by the
U.S. Senate and was appointed a Judge of the United States Court of
Appeals for Veterans Claims in August 2017. Judge
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Toth is a veteran of the Judge Advocate General (JAG) Corps of the
United States Navy, where he served as Senior Defense Counsel in Pearl
Harbor, Hawaii, and provided legal assistance to veterans, service
members, and their families. In 2011, Judge Toth was deployed to the
Zhari district of Afghanistan where he served as a Field Officer for the
Rule of Law Field Force Afghanistan (ROLFF-A) and was stationed with the
Army's 10th Mountain Division. He received the Joint Service
Commendation Medal for his service in Afghanistan. After leaving active
duty, Judge Toth served as Associate Federal Defender in Milwaukee, WI,
with a focus on appellate litigation and motions practice. Judge Toth
has served on or appeared before several federal and military courts,
including the United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit and
the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit. Judge Toth
clerked for Judge Daniel A. Manion of the United States Court of Appeals
for the Seventh Circuit and Judge Robert J. Conrad of the United States
District Court for the Western District of North Carolina. Additionally,
he worked as an Associate Counsel at Drinker Biddle & Reath, LLP in the
commercial litigation group. Judge Toth received his Bachelor of Arts
degree from the University of Chicago and his juris doctor from the Ave
Maria School of Law, where he was the managing editor of the Ave Maria
Law Review.
JOSEPH L. FALVEY, Jr., judge; Judge Falvey was nominated by
President Donald J. Trump, confirmed by the Senate, and appointed a
Judge of the United States Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims in May
2018. Before his judicial appointment, Judge Falvey was the District
Counsel, Detroit District, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. As District
Counsel, Judge Falvey supervised the District legal staff and was
responsible for resolving issues related to statutory and regulatory
compliance, government contracting and fiscal law, labor and employment
law, environmental law, claims, real property, standards of conduct /
ethics, procurement fraud, and litigation. Previously, Judge Falvey
served as an Assistant United States Attorney, in the United States
Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of Michigan. As a member of
the National Security Unit, he was responsible for investigating and
prosecuting matters involving national security including matters
involving individuals and organizations that engage in foreign counter-
intelligence, espionage, and those who plan, financially support, or
carry out international and domestic terrorist activities. Before
joining the United States Attorney's Office, Judge Falvey was a
Professor of Law at Ave Maria School of Law from 1999 to 2007 and the
University of Detroit School of Law from 1994 to 1998, where he taught
evidence, trial advocacy, military law, national security law, and
criminal law and procedure. Judge Falvey is also a retired Marine Corps
officer who began his military career as an Armor Officer in 1981 and
served as a Tank Platoon Commander, Battalion Adjutant, and Anti-Tank
(TOW) Company Executive Officer. From 1984 to 1987, he attended law
school through the Marine Corps's Funded Legal Education Program.
Certified as a Judge Advocate in 1987, Judge Falvey was initially
assigned to Camp Pendleton, CA, where he served as a prosecutor or
defense counsel in more than 250 courts-martial. He also served as the
Senior Judge Advocate for the 11th Marine Expeditionary Unit (Special
Operations Capable). In 1990, Judge Falvey attended The Judge Advocate
General's School of the Army, and he was subsequently assigned as the
Deputy Head, Military Law Branch, Judge Advocate Division, Headquarters
Marine Corps. In 1994, Judge Falvey left active duty and continued to
serve in the U.S. Marine Corps Reserve. From 1994 to 1998, Judge Falvey
was a Special Courts-Martial Judge and presided over more than 100
courts-martial. In 1998, he was assigned as an Assistant Staff Judge
Advocate for Operational Law at U.S. Central Command, and he was
mobilized in support of Operation Enduring Freedom in the aftermath of
the 9 / 11 terrorist attacks. In this capacity, he worked closely with
various agencies of the U.S. Government on matters related to the Global
War on Terrorism and he deployed to Afghanistan in 2002. Judge Falvey
subsequently served as an Appellate Judge for the U.S. Navy-Marine Corps
Court of Criminal Appeals. From 2008 to 2010, Judge Falvey served as the
Commanding Officer, Marine Forces Reserve, Legal Services Support
Section. Judge Falvey retired in 2011 having attained the rank of
Colonel. His decorations include the Legion of Merit (with star),
Defense Meritorious Service Medal, Meritorious Service Medal, Navy-
Marine Corps Commendation Medal, Joint Service Achievement Medal, and
Navy-Marine Corps Achievement Medal. Judge Falvey was selected as both
the ABA Outstanding Young Military Lawyer (1990) and the Judge Advocate
Association Outstanding Career Judge Advocate (2011). Judge Falvey holds
a Bachelor of Arts in economics from the University of Notre Dame, a
juris doctor, cum laude, from Notre Dame Law School, and a master of
laws, Distinguished Graduate, from The Judge Advocate General's School.
Judge Falvey and his wife, Anne, have nine children and they are
licensed foster parents who have opened their home to more than a dozen
abused and neglected children.
SCOTT J. LAURER, judge; Judge Lauer was nominated by President
Donald J. Trump, confirmed by the Senate, and in August 2020 he received
his judicial commission, becoming a Judge of the United States Court of
Appeals for Veterans Claims. Before his judicial
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appointment, Judge Laurer served as Deputy Legal Counsel to the National
Security Council at the White House. There he advised the President,
Vice President, Assistant to the President for National Security
Affairs, and the staffs of the National Security Council and Homeland
Security Council. Judge Laurer served in the United States Navy for 30
years, retiring from active duty as a Captain in the Judge Advocate
General's Corps. He supported combat operations as senior legal advisor
for the USS Abraham Lincoln Carrier Strike Group during its historic 10-
month deployment for Operation Enduring Freedom, Operation Southern
Watch, and Operation Iraqi Freedom. As a senior officer, Judge Laurer
held various distinguished positions including the following: Special
Counsel to the Chief of Naval Operations; Commanding Officer, U.S.
Region Legal Service Office Europe, Africa, and Southwest Asia; Special
Legal Advisor to Commander, International Security Assistance Force and
U.S. Forces-Afghanistan; Senior Legal Advisor to Commander, North
American Aerospace Defense Command and U.S. Northern Command; and Deputy
Legal Counsel to the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. A Woodbury,
NJ, native, Judge Laurer graduated from Rutgers University. He earned
his juris doctor from Temple University School of Law and his master of
laws (international law) from The George Washington University Law
School.
GRANT C. JAQUITH, judge; Judge Jaquith was nominated to the United
States Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims by President Donald J. Trump
on September 19, 2019, confirmed by the U.S. Senate on July 23, 2020,
appointed by President Donald Trump on September 1, 2020, and took the
judicial oath the next day. Until his judicial appointment, Judge
Jaquith had served as the United States Attorney for the Northern
District of New York since July 1, 2017, leading the work of 50 lawyers
in four offices who prosecuted federal criminal cases and represented
the United States in civil litigation, from investigation through trial
or other resolution and appeal. While United States Attorney, Judge
Jaquith served as Vice Chair and then Chair of the Servicemembers' and
Veterans' Rights Subcommittee of the Attorney General's Advisory
Committee. Judge Jaquith became an Assistant U.S. Attorney on August 6,
1989; he served as the NDNY's Narcotics Chief and Chief of the Albany
Office from 1998 to 2006, Chief of the Criminal Division from 2006 to
2010, and First Assistant U.S. Attorney from 2010 to 2017. In 2016,
Judge Jaquith was honored by the Department of Justice with a national
Director's Award for Executive Achievement. Judge Jaquith was
commissioned in the U.S. Army in 1979 and served in the Army Judge
Advocate General's Corps from 1982 to 2011, rising to the rank of
Colonel in 2004. His military awards include the Legion of Merit. Judge
Jaquith was an Army circuit judge from 2001 to 2010, presiding over
courts-martial at forts throughout the continental United States and in
Alaska, Germany, and Korea. In 2006, he was activated to serve as the
trial judge at Fort Bragg, NC. Judge Jaquith's other military
assignments, including active duty from 1982 to 1988, involved advising
commanders and staff on legal aspects of disciplinary actions and
command administration and operations; providing legal assistance to
soldiers, veterans, and their families; settling civil claims; providing
instruction on legal issues; litigating at administrative boards; and
prosecuting criminal cases. Judge Jaquith was in private practice with
Bond Schoeneck & King in Syracuse from 1988 to 1989 and taught Juvenile
Law and Federal Income Taxation at Drury College, Fort Leonard Wood, MO,
in 1984. In 1982, he interned at the Public Defender's Office in
Gainesville, FL, where he represented defendants in misdemeanor trials.
Judge Jaquith received his Juris Doctor from the University of Florida
College of Law in 1982 and a Bachelor of Science, cum laude, in
business administration and accounting from Presbyterian College,
Clinton, SC, in 1979, from which he was a Distinguished Military
Graduate. He is married to Rosemarie Perez Jaquith, who is also a
lawyer, and has six children (Amanda, Larene, Gordon, Olivia, Isabelle,
and Colton) and six grandchildren.
Officers of the U.S. Court of Appeals
for Veterans Claims
Clerk of the Court.--Gregory O. Block, 501-5970.
Chief Deputy Clerk Operations Manager.--Anne P. Stygles.
Counsel to the Clerk.--Cary P. Sklar.
Senior Staff Attorney, Central Legal Staff.--Cynthia Brandon-
Arnold.
Deputy Executive Officer.--Patrick H. Barnwell.
Librarian.--Allison Fentress.