The Board denied the appellant's claim for recognition as the Veteran's surviving spouse for VA death benefits purposes, finding that she did not meet the legal requirements to be considered a proper claimant.
The deciding factor: The marriage between the appellant and the Veteran was not valid under the laws of Minnesota due to the lack of a one-year period prior to their marriage. The appellant could not establish that they believed themselves legally married before April 2009, nor did she provide evidence showing that her relationship with the Veteran constituted a common law marriage.
- Claimed conditions
- Not specified in this decision
- How they argued it
- Not specified
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- July 26, 2017
- Citation
- 1729338
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 1729338.
What this means for you
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