The Veteran's claims for service connection were granted, but an earlier effective date is denied. The Board found that the Veteran did not submit a formal or informal claim prior to July 11, 2017.
The deciding factor: The Veteran submitted a pre-discharge compensation claim form in March 2012, but it was never submitted to VA and there were no other communications indicating a claim for service connection before July 11, 2017.
- Claimed conditions
- left shoulder arthropathy, scars on the left shoulder
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- July 11, 2019
- Citation
- 19153920
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 1,738 · Granted: 17% (granted or partly granted, in the vetted decisions on this site)
Judge attribution: 2025 complete; earlier years partial.
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 19153920.
What this means for you
A remand is not a loss. The Board sent the case back for more development — often a new exam or missing records — before making a final decision. Many remands later end in a grant, and the decision spells out exactly what the Board wanted to see.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Granted
The Veteran's separation from service was due to a service-connected disability, allowing him to qualify for the maximum educational assistance rate under the Post-9/11 GI Bill.
- Denied
The Board has determined that the severance of service connection for left shoulder conditions was proper due to a prior dishonorable discharge, and thus restoration is denied.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for higher ratings for various service-connected disabilities due to a lack of recent VA examinations and assertions of worsening symptoms. The cases are being returned to the AOJ for further action.
- Denied
The Veteran's claim for increased ratings for his left shoulder labrum tear and scars on the left shoulder was denied as there is no evidence of functional impairment or other disabling effects not provided for by the applicable diagnostic codes.
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