Cox v. United States

The case Cox v. United States was decided by the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit on June 22, 2018. The plaintiff, a military veteran identified as Cox, filed a lawsuit challenging the statutory requirement that his military retired pay be offset by the amount of disability compensation received from the Department of Veterans Affairs. Cox argued that the offset provisions under federal law constituted an unconstitutional taking of his property without just compensation and violated his due process rights by depriving him of full concurrent receipt of both benefits. The government maintained that Congress lawfully established the compensation scheme to prevent duplication of benefits. The court reviewed the statutory framework and the constitutional claims, ultimately affirming the lower judgment. The ruling upheld the longstanding federal policy restricting simultaneous receipt of full military retired pay and VA disability benefits.

The United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit affirmed the lower court's decision, holding that the offset provisions do not constitute a taking of private property and do not violate due process.

Whether the statutory offset reducing a veteran's military retired pay by the amount of VA disability compensation violates the Takings Clause of the Fifth Amendment or the Due Process Clause.

The decision reinforced the existing statutory prohibition against concurrent receipt of full military retired pay and VA disability benefits, limiting financial recovery options for veterans who lack separate statutory authorization. It was noted in military law circles for clarifying constitutional boundaries regarding veterans' dual-compensation claims.