The veteran's appeal for initial compensable disability ratings for a laceration of the left index finger and lumbosacral strain was dismissed as he did not file a timely substantive appeal after receiving the statement of the case.
The deciding factor: The veteran failed to submit a VA Form 9 or any other acceptable correspondence within the required time frame, resulting in his appeal being dismissed.
- Claimed conditions
- laceration of the left index finger, lumbosacral strain
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- December 18, 2002
- Citation
- 0218421
This is a plain-language summary generated by AI from a public Board of Veterans’ Appeals decision. It can contain errors — always verify against the original. Look up the original decision on VA.gov (opens in a new tab) using citation 0218421.
What this means for you
A dismissal means the Board did not decide the issue on its merits — usually because it was withdrawn or had become moot. It says more about procedure than about whether a claim like this can win.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Granted
The Board granted service connection for lumbosacral strain and lumbar radicopathy, right side, secondary to the lumbosacral strain.
- Granted
The Board granted service connection for lumbosacral strain, finding that the Veteran's low back injury occurred during a period of active duty for training (ADT) and continued therefrom.
- Dismissed
The appeals for restoration of ratings and for a higher disability rating were dismissed as the April 2025 rating decision did not make final decisions on these issues.
- Denied
The Board denied the veteran's claims for increased ratings and service connection, with the exception of remanding certain issues.
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