38 CFR §19.50
Verified against eCFR.gov as of June 20, 2026View official text on eCFR.gov ↗
- (a)Persons authorized. A Notice of Disagreement and/or a Substantive Appeal may be filed by a claimant personally, or by his or her representative if a proper Power of Attorney or declaration of representation, as applicable, is on record or accompanies such Notice of Disagreement or Substantive Appeal.
- (b)Claimant rated incompetent by Department of Veterans Affairs or under disability and unable to file. If an appeal is not filed by a person listed in paragraph (a) of this section, and the claimant is rated incompetent by the Department of Veterans Affairs or has a physical, mental, or legal disability which prevents the filing of an appeal on his or her own behalf, a Notice of Disagreement and a Substantive Appeal may be filed by a fiduciary appointed to manage the claimant's affairs by the Department of Veterans Affairs or a court, or by a person acting as next friend if the appointed fiduciary fails to take needed action or no fiduciary has been appointed.
- (c)Claimant under disability and able to file. Notwithstanding the fact that a fiduciary may have been appointed for a claimant, an appeal filed by a claimant will be accepted.