The Veteran and the appellant were validly married under Texas law as of March 2006, which established a date of marriage more than one year prior to the Veteran's death. Therefore, the appellant is recognized as the Veteran's surviving spouse for purposes of eligibility for payment of VA benefits, including Dependency and Indemnity Compensation (DIC) and pension.
The deciding factor: The couple consistently introduced themselves as husband and wife since they began cohabitation in March 2006, held themselves out to others as married, lived together continuously from March 2006 until the Veteran's death in May 2008, and their marriage was valid under Texas law.
- 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 25, 2015
- Citation
- 1527131
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 1527131.
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.
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