The veteran's son is not eligible for death pension benefits as an adult helpless child because his previous marriages are considered valid and do not meet the criteria for exception under VA regulations.
The deciding factor: VA regulations bar benefits to children whose marriages occurred after November 1, 1990 unless the marriage was void or annulled by a court of competent jurisdiction. The appellant's second marriage is deemed valid as evidenced by the divorce decree issued in May 1994.
- Claimed conditions
- Spina bifida
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- July 13, 2004
- Citation
- 0418663
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 1,012 · Granted: 24% (granted or partly granted, in the vetted decisions on this site)
Judge attribution: 2025 complete; earlier years partial.
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 0418663.
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Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
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The appeal for PTSD is dismissed. The appeals for low back disability, spina bifida, and neurological disorder of the left lower extremity are remanded due to insufficient medical opinions.
- Granted
The Veteran's daughter, M.S.R, is recognized as a 'helpless child' due to her permanent incapacity for self-support prior to reaching the age of 18 based on her disabilities.
- Granted
The Veteran's son, D.V., was found to be permanently incapable of self-support prior to reaching the age of 18 due to his disabilities. The Board has granted recognition of D.V. as the Veteran’s 'helpless child' based on new evidence showing he could not support himself.
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