The Board denied the appellant's claim for recognition as the surviving spouse of the Veteran, finding that she was not legally married to him at the time of his death and had not maintained a valid marital relationship with him since their divorce in May 1991.
The deciding factor: The evidence did not support the appellant's contention that she remained married to the Veteran after their legal divorce in 1991, or that they had resumed living together as a common-law couple. The Board found her claims for surviving spouse status lacking credibility and unsupported by the record.
- 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 16, 2009
- Citation
- 0922585
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 0922585.
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