United States Supreme Court Cases & Opinions

U.S. Supreme Court

Cass v. United States, 417 U.S. 72 (1974)

Cass v. United States

No. 73-604

Argued April 16, 1974

Decided May 28, 1974*

417 U.S. 72

Syllabus

Title 10 U.S.C. § 687(a) provides for readjustment pay for an Armed Forces reservist who is involuntarily released from active duty and has completed, immediately before his release, "at least five years of continuous active duty," computed by multiplying his years of active service by two months' basic pay of his grade at the time of release, and further provides that

"[f]or the purposes of this subsection -- . . . (2) a part of a year that is six months or more is counted as a whole year, and a part of a year that is less than six months is disregarded. . . ."

Held: The "rounding" provision, as is clear from the statute's legislative history, applies only in computing the amount of readjustment pay, and not in determining eligibility therefor; hence, a reservist must serve a minimum of five full years of continuous active duty before his involuntary release in order to qualify for readjustment benefits. Pp. 417 U. S. 75-84.

483 F.2d 220, affirmed.

WHITE, J., delivered the opinion of the Court, in which BURGER, C.J., and BRENNAN, STEWART, MARSHALL, BLACKMUN, POWELL, and REHNQUIST, JJ., joined. DOUGLAS, J., filed a dissenting statement, post, p. 417 U. S. 84.

Page 417 U. S. 73