38 U.S.C. § 7111 (VETERANS’ BENEFITS)
§ 7111. Revision of decisions on grounds of clear and unmistakable error
(a) A decision by the Board is subject to revision on the grounds of clear and unmistakable error. If evidence establishes the error, the prior decision shall be reversed or revised.
(b) For the purposes of authorizing benefits, a rating or other adjudicative decision of the Board that constitutes a reversal or revision of a prior decision of the Board on the grounds of clear and unmistakable error has the same effect as if the decision had been made on the date of the prior decision.
(c) Review to determine whether clear and unmistakable error exists in a case may be instituted by the Board on the Board’s own motion or upon request of the claimant.
(d) A request for revision of a decision of the Board based on clear and unmistakable error may be made at any time after that decision is made.
(e) Such a request shall be submitted directly to the Board and shall be decided by the Board on the merits, without referral to any adjudicative or hearing official acting on behalf of the Secretary.
(f) A claim filed with the Secretary that requests reversal or revision of a previous Board decision due to clear and unmistakable error shall be considered to be a request to the Board under this section, and the Secretary shall promptly transmit any such request to the Board for its consideration under this section.
(Added Pub. L. 105–111, § 1(b)(1), Nov. 21, 1997, 111 Stat. 2271; amended Pub. L. 115–55, § 2(v), Aug. 23, 2017, 131 Stat. 1113.)
heading: Amendment of Subsection (e)
text: Pub. L. 115–55, § 2(v), (x), Aug. 23, 2017, 131 Stat. 1113, 1115, provided that, applicable to all claims for which the Secretary of Veterans Affairs provides notice of a decision under section 5104 of this title on or after the later of 540 days after Aug. 23, 2017, or 30 days after the date on which the Secretary submits to Congress a certification of certain capabilities of the Department of Veterans Affairs to carry out the new appeals system established by Pub. L. 115–55 and to address appeals of decisions on legacy claims, with provision for early applicability of the new appeals system to certain claims, subsection (e) of this section is amended by striking “, without referral to any adjudicative or hearing official acting on behalf of the Secretary”. See 2017 Amendment note below.
heading: Amendments
text: 2017—Subsec. (e). Pub. L. 115–55 struck out “, without referral to any adjudicative or hearing official acting on behalf of the Secretary” after “merits”.
heading: Effective Date of 2017 Amendment
text: Amendment by Pub. L. 115–55 applicable to all claims for which the Secretary of Veterans Affairs provides notice of a decision under section 5104 of this title on or after the later of 540 days after Aug. 23, 2017, or 30 days after the date on which the Secretary submits to Congress a certification of certain capabilities of the Department of Veterans Affairs to carry out the new appeals system established by Pub. L. 115–55 and to address appeals of decisions on legacy claims, with provision for early applicability of the new appeals system to certain claims, see section 2(x) of Pub. L. 115–55, set out as a note under section 101 of this title.
heading: Effective Date
text: Section applicable to any determination made before, on, or after Nov. 21, 1997, see section 1(c)(1) of Pub. L. 105–111, set out as a note under section 5109A of this title.