Ronald Gendron v. Honorable William B. Saxbe, Attorney General of the United States of America

Gendron, a totally disabled veteran, brought suit challenging the constitutional validity of 38 U.S.C. § 3404 , a statute that recognizes a veteran’s right to the assistance of a lawyer to help him prepare and present to the Veterans’ Administration claims for benefits, but limits to $10 the compensation that a lawyer can receive for his services. We hold that the complaint presented questions that were not constitutionally insubstantial and, therefore, the district court erred in denying Gendron’s motion to convene a three-judge court and in dismissing his complaint.

The following facts are drawn from the complaint and the affidavit annexed to it. Gendron had been found totally disabled by the State of California and by the Social Security Administration of the United States. He sought veterans’ disability benefits, claiming that his illness was service connected. Personnel of the Veterans’ Administration thought otherwise; the Administration’s Ratings Board rejected his claims stating that he “did not meet the schedular requirements for nonservice-connected pension benefits nor were his disabilities considered sufficient to permanently preclude some form of…