It’s long been expected that state attorneys general from opposing parties from the sitting U.S. president will sue the president — now-Gov. Maura Healey famously did so about 100 times during Donald Trump’s first term when she was Massachusetts’ Attorney General.
But it’s rare that attorneys general from all 50 states, plus the District of Columbia and of the Northern Mariana Islands — a U.S. territory — put aside their party differences and join together in one legal action.
That’s exactly what’s happened with an amicus brief filed this past Wednesday with the U.S. Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims to restore education benefits denied to veterans and their family members under the GI Bill.
The brief, filed by Virginia Attorney General Jason Miyares and joined by attorneys general in all other states, sought to demand full education benefits to U.S. Army veteran Lieutenant Colonel Paul Yoon and his daughter Elizabeth Yoon, and U.S. Air Force veteran Colonel Toby Doran and his son Thomas Doran.
Oregon Attorney General Dan Rayfield told OregonLive that having attorneys general in all 50 states join together on anything is “rare,” but that they did so in this case because of the importance of the issue.
“Our veterans deserve every benefit they’ve earned. The GI Bill is a promise we made, and standing together in this amicus brief sends a strong message: We will not let bureaucracy or red tape stand in the way of doing what’s right for those who’ve served. This is about honoring veterans, and all 50 states are saying ‘enough is enough,’” Rayfield told OregonLive.
The legal brief states that the veterans in question are entitled to a full four years’ of education benefits rather than just three.
There was a bipartisan petition to the U.S. Supreme Court in 2023 which led to the 2024 Rudisill v. McDonough decision, which the brief says allows service members and their families a total of four years of benefits.
“But the VA [U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs] continues to deny veterans education benefits to which they are entitled — now by taking an unduly cramped reading of Rudisill itself,” the brief states.
“These denials break the promises made to veterans when they agreed to serve,” the brief continues.
Yoon and Doran served for 24 and 27 years respectively, between them serving in Iraq, Afghanistan, Kosovo, the Mediterranean and Southwest Asia. Both have received numerous military honors, with Yoon being awarded the Bronze Star and Doran receiving the Legion of Merit.
“The VA’s reading of Rudisill is unsupportable and its denial of petitioners’ education benefits is unlawful,” the brief concludes.
