The Board has granted the appellant's request to be recognized as the Veteran's surviving spouse for VA benefits purposes, based on clear and convincing evidence of a common-law marriage prior to their official marriage in October 2014.
The deciding factor: The decision is based on clear and convincing evidence that the appellant and the Veteran entered into a common law marriage under Alabama law prior to their official marriage in October 2014, which was sufficient for the appellant to be recognized as the surviving spouse 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
- February 10, 2020
- Citation
- 20011027
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 20011027.
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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