Court Victory for Vietnam War Blue Water Navy Veterans Procopio v. Wilkie

Welcome to the Bergmann & Moore, LLC web site.  On January 29, 2019, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit (Fed. Cir.) extended the presumption of exposure to herbicides to cover Veterans who served in the territorial sea of the Republic of Vietnam.  That means as many as 190,000 Blue Water Veterans became eligible for presumptive service connection for conditions associated with herbicide exposure such as Agent Orange (38 USC Section 1116).  Specifically, the Fed. Cir. ruled the definition of “served in the Republic of Vietnam” extends to 12 nautical miles off the coast of Vietnam (that distance equals 13.81 statute miles). 

On October 15, 2018, Bergmann & Moore was honored to partner with The American Legion and submit an amicus brief to the Fed. Cir. strongly supporting Procopio’s appeal.  The Fed. Cir. decision, the amicus brief, and a copy of VA law listing the presumptive medical conditions based on herbicide exposure (38 USC Section 1116).