Heather Quillet, American Federation of Government Employees, Local 1133 v. Department of Veterans Affairs

N OTE: This disposition is nonprecedential.
United States Court of Appeals
for the Federal Circuit
______________________
HEATHER QUILLET, AMERICAN FEDERATION
OF GOVERNMENT EMPLOYEES, LOCAL 1133,
Petitioners
v.
DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS,
Respondent
______________________
2025-1195
______________________
Petition for review of an arbitrator’s decision in No.
241026-00647 by David. E. Wilson.
______________________
Decided: July 22, 2026
______________________
ANDREW WEEKS , Legal Justice at Work, PLLC, Louis-
ville, KY, argued for petitioners. Also represented by
WHITNEY RAILEY .
MATTHEW J UDE CARHART , Commercial Litigation
Branch, Civil Division, United States Department of Jus-
tice, Washington, DC, argued for respondent. Also repre-
sented by ELIZABETH MARIE H OSFORD, P ATRICIA M.
MCCARTHY , BRETT SHUMATE.
______________________
Case: 25-1195 Document: 48 Page: 1 Filed: 07/22/2026

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QUILLET v. DVA 2
Before M OORE, Chief Judge, L OURIE and H UGHES , Circuit
Judges.
HUGHES , Circuit Judge.
Heather Quillet petitions this court to review an arbi-
trator’s decision sustaining her removal from federal ser-
vice. Ms. Quillet worked as a registered nurse at the Robley
Rex VA Medical Center (Robley) in Louisville, Kentucky,
from July 2013 through June 2023. She was hired under
38 U.S.C. § 7401(1), which provides for appointment of VA
healthcare professionals outside the standard civil service
appointment procedures of title 5 of the U.S. Code, see Bon-
ner v. Dep’t of Veterans Affs. Pittsburgh Healthcare Sys.,
477 F.3d 1343, 1345 (Fed. Cir. 2007), and was a member of
the American Federation of Government Employees, Lo-
cal 1133 (the Union).
In June 2023, Ms. Quillet tested positive for mariju-
ana, and the Department of Veterans Affairs proposed her
removal for violating its drug-free workplace policy. The
Union, as Ms. Quillet’s representative, filed a grievance
with the agency challenging her removal. After meeting
with Union representatives, Robley director Jo-Ann Gins-
berg issued a response sustaining Ms. Quillet’s removal.
Ms. Quillet then elected to challenge her removal through
arbitration pursuant to the collective bargaining agree-
ment between the Union and the agency. The arbitrator
held a hearing in September 2024 and issued a decision
sustaining Ms. Quillet’s removal on October 21, 2024.
Ms. Quillet and the Union then petitioned for review by
this court.
Ms. Quillet alleges that jurisdiction is proper under
5 U.S.C. § 7121(f), which provides this court with jurisdic-
tion to review certain arbitrator decisions. See Burke v.
U.S. Postal Serv., 888 F.2d 833, 834 (Fed. Cir. 1989). But
we have expressly held that section 7121(f)’s jurisdictional
grant does not extend to VA healthcare professionals who
Case: 25-1195 Document: 48 Page: 2 Filed: 07/22/2026

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QUILLET v. DVA 3
are appointed under 38 U.S.C. § 7401(1), like Ms. Quillet.
See Bonner, 477 F.3d at 1346–48 (concluding that employ-
ees hired under § 7401(1) “have never had the right to ju-
dicial review by this court” of arbitrator decisions). Because
we are without jurisdiction to consider the arbitrator’s de-
cision, we dismiss Ms. Quillet’s petition for lack of jurisdic-
tion.
DISMISSED
COSTS
No costs.
Case: 25-1195 Document: 48 Page: 3 Filed: 07/22/2026

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