The Board granted the appellant's claim for recognition as the surviving spouse of the Veteran, finding that she met all criteria and entered into a valid marriage prior to the ceremonial wedding in November 2015.
The deciding factor: The Board found that the appellant did not know about the legal impediment (that common law marriage was not permitted in Massachusetts) when she entered into the marriage with the Veteran, thus deeming her marriage valid for VA benefits purposes.
- Claimed conditions
- Not specified in this decision
- How they argued it
- Not specified
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- December 10, 2019
- Citation
- 19192588
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 19192588.
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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This is general information, not legal advice. For advice about your own situation, talk to a VA-accredited representative — many help for free.