In Re BYRD [ORDER]

NOTE: This order is nonprecedential.

United States Court of Appeals
for the Federal Circuit
______________________
TAKICIAN L. BYRD,
Claimant-Appellant

v.

DOUGLAS A. COLLINS, Secretary of Veterans Af-
fairs,
Respondent-Appellee
______________________

2026-2011
______________________

Appeal from the United States Court of Appeals for
Veterans Claims in No. 25-5171, Judge Grant Jaquith.
-----------------------------------------------------

In Re TAKICIAN L. BYRD,
Petitioner
______________________

2026-143
______________________

On Petition for Writ of Mandamus to the United States
Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims in No. 25-5171,
Judge Grant Jaquith.

Case: 26-143 Document: 3 Page: 1 Filed: 08/12/2026

IN RE BYRD
2
______________________

ON PETITION
______________________
Before LOURIE, PROST, and REYNA, Circuit Judges.
PER CURIAM.
O R D E R
On January 22, 2026, the United States Court of Ap-
peals for Veterans Claims entered final judgment dismiss-
ing Takician L. Byrd’s appeal as premature due to her
pending motion for reconsideration before the Board of Vet-
erans’ Appeals. Ms. Byrd filed a notice of appeal on May
22, 2026. In this court, she also filed a petition for a writ
of mandamus on May 24, 2026, seeking, inter alia, to direct
the Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims to vacate its judg-
ment and the Board to decide the motion for reconsidera-
tion.
This court lacks jurisdiction to hear Ms. Byrd’s appeal
from the judgment of the Court of Appeals for Veterans
Claims because her appeal from that judgment was un-
timely. Like appeals from district courts, the statutorily
prescribed time for filing appeals from the Court of Appeals
for Veterans Claims is jurisdictional. See Wagner v.
Shinseki, 733 F.3d 1343, 1348 (Fed. Cir. 2013); see also
Henderson v. Shinseki, 562 U.S. 428, 438–39 (2011) (“Be-
cause the time for taking an appeal from a district court to
a court of appeals in a civil case has long been understood
to be jurisdictional, th[e] language [of 38 U.S.C. § 7292(a)]
clearly signals an intent to impose the same restrictions on
appeals from the [Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims] to
the Federal Circuit.” (citation omitted)). To be timely, a
notice of appeal must be filed “within the time and in the
manner prescribed for appeal” from a district court to a
court of appeals, which is 60 days. § 7292(a); see 28 U.S.C.
§ 2107(b); Fed. R. App. P. 4(a)(1)(B); Fed. Cir. R. 1(a)(1)(D).
Case: 26-143 Document: 3 Page: 2 Filed: 08/12/2026

IN RE BYRD
3
Ms. Byrd filed her appeal well outside this jurisdictional
deadline.
We must also deny her request for mandamus relief. A
writ of mandamus is an extraordinary remedy which may
issue only if petitioner has shown a clear and indisputable
right to relief and that there are no other adequate means
to attain the relief desired. See Cheney v. U.S. Dist. Ct. for
D.C., 542 U.S. 367, 380–81 (2004). Ms. Byrd has not made
that showing. She could have challenged the judgment
through a timely appeal. She also has alternative avenues
to seek Board action because she may file a petition for
mandamus relief from the Court of Appeals for Veterans
Claims.
Accordingly,
IT IS ORDERED THAT:
(1) The appeal is dismissed, and the petition is denied.
(2) Each side shall bear its own costs.

August 12, 2026
Date
F
OR THE COURT

Case: 26-143 Document: 3 Page: 3 Filed: 08/12/2026