The veteran's spouse, who was divorced from the veteran at the time of his death, is not recognized as the surviving spouse for VA benefits due to a lack of legal authority recognizing such after divorce.
The deciding factor: There is no legal authority that would permit VA to recognize the appellant as the surviving spouse of the veteran after their divorce.
- Claimed conditions
- anxiety neurosis with depressive features
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating
- Not verified here — check the original decision
- Decision date
- September 1, 2005
- Citation
- 0524070
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. Search VA.gov for the original decision (opens in a new tab) using citation 0524070.
What this means for you
A final Board denial may be appealed to the U.S. Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims, generally within 120 days of the Board mailing date. A Supplemental Claim with new and relevant evidence is a separate option. Another Higher-Level Review of the Board decision is not available. Check your own notice: this historical decision does not set your deadline.
What you can do next
Use your own notice and decision stage. A remanded issue is not a final court-appealable denial. VA review guidance and CAVC filing instructions (U.S. federal; reviewed October 7, 2026).
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Whole decision: Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's appeal is being remanded for additional development, including scheduling a VA examination and providing Vazquez-Flores compliant notice.
- Whole decision: Remanded (sent back)
The veteran's claim for an increased evaluation for his service-connected anxiety neurosis with depressive features is being remanded due to the need for additional VA medical records and a psychiatric examination.
- Whole decision: Remanded (sent back)
The veteran's appeal is remanded due to the need for additional medical records and a more current psychiatric examination.
- Whole decision: Denied
The Board denied the veteran's claim for specially adapted housing or a special home adaptation grant, finding that he did not meet the criteria for eligibility due to lack of anatomical loss or use of limbs.
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