Federal Court Case – Judicial Review of Army Board for Correction of Military Records (ABCMR) Decision
Brian was actually recommended by another lawyer who formerly practiced this area of law. I had my skepticism of the viability of my case as we had been fighting for roughly a decade before seeking his counsel. Brian quickly assuaged my concerns and explained how we were approaching the case wrong. With patience and care he explained the type of lawsuit we intended to mount was incorrect due to several reasons but most notably equitable tolling and when it started for my case was very unclear. We learned our initial lawsuit fell outside the statute of limitations due to the fact that tolling started on the first competent board rendered a decision on my case. This was unclear even to my brother, a JAG attorney which should tell you something about Brian’s understanding of the law.
Brian shifted our focus from a Tucker Act Lawsuit to an Administrative Procedures Act lawsuit in an effort to illustrate that the review board acted in an arbitrary and capricious manner in my case. Mr. Schenk brought this case to a swift conclusion finding relevant case law and even admonishing the ABCMR for trying to rely on a regulation to separate me that they refused to adhere to themselves. This is real advocacy, he brought my concerns to light and showed that the Army’s case was indefensible. Even despite the ABCMR returning the same decision when the case was remanded back to them, the Army’s counsel quickly decided to correct my record anyway based on the strength of Brian’s argument.
It was very refreshing to emerge on the other side of this case feeling like my voice actually came through in the arguments presented. The icing on the cake for me was that Brian went so far as to find additional benefits that I had no idea I was entitled to, so ultimately I am walking away with an even better outcome than I expected in the first place. Brian is a fierce advocate, but also patient and understanding, these are great virtues which made my case my own. I would have zero reservations recommending his practice to other veterans.