The veteran's death was used to establish eligibility for Dependents' Educational Assistance (DEA) benefits under Chapter 35, Title 38, United States Code. However, the appellant had already reached her 26th birthday prior to the date of the veteran's death, making her ineligible for additional educational benefits.
The deciding factor: The appellant was born in July 1973 and thus turned 26 by July 1999, which is before the veteran died in December 1999. The criteria for eligibility under Chapter 35 of Title 38, United States Code, do not extend beyond a person's 26th birthday.
- Claimed conditions
- Not specified in this decision
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- February 3, 2005
- Citation
- 0502585
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 1,175 · Granted: 22% (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 0502585.
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