The Board has determined that the appellant and the Veteran had a deemed valid marriage due to living together continuously for more than one year prior to the Veteran's death, despite Michigan not recognizing common law marriages. Therefore, the appellant is recognized as the surviving spouse of the Veteran for purposes of VA death benefits.
The deciding factor: The Board found that there was an impediment to a common law marriage due to Michigan's legal requirements but concluded that the appellant entered into the marriage without knowledge of this impediment and cohabitated continuously with the Veteran until his death, satisfying the criteria for a deemed valid marriage under VA regulations.
- Claimed conditions
- Not specified in this decision
- How they argued it
- Not specified
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- April 2, 2012
- Citation
- 1211890
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 1211890.
What this means for you
A grant means the Board agreed the veteran was entitled to the benefit. Decisions like this show the kind of evidence and arguments that tend to succeed for claims like it.
What you can do next
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