The Board denied the appellant's claim for recognition as the Veteran's surviving spouse, finding that there was no valid common law marriage and thus she could not be considered the Veteran's surviving spouse.
The deciding factor: The evidence did not support a conclusion that the appellant and the Veteran were in a common law marriage, despite their commitment to each other. The state of mind and intent of both parties regarding their marital status was clear: they did not consider themselves to be in such a relationship.
- Claimed conditions
- Not specified in this decision
- How they argued it
- Not specified
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- June 12, 2009
- Citation
- 0922169
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 0922169.
What this means for you
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