The Veteran's appeal of service connection claims for right knee, left knee, back, acquired psychiatric disorder, and gastroesophageal reflux disease has been dismissed due to the death of the Veteran.
The deciding factor: The Veteran died during the pendency of the appeal, thus the Board lacks jurisdiction to adjudicate the merits of the case.
- Claimed conditions
- right knee, left knee, back, acquired psychiatric disorder, gastroesophageal reflux disease
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- October 7, 2020
- Citation
- A20015241
What this means for you
A dismissal means the Board did not decide the issue on its merits — usually because it was withdrawn or had become moot. It says more about procedure than about whether a claim like this can win.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Partly granted
The Board granted service connection for gastroesophageal reflux disease, obstructive sleep apnea, and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease but denied service connection for irritable bowel syndrome. The Board also denied an increased rating for the Veteran's service-connected psychiatric condition.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claim for an acquired psychiatric disorder to correct a duty to assist error, requiring further examination and review of private treatment records.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claims for service connection due to a pre-decisional duty to assist error, as it is unclear whether the Veteran's claimed conditions are due to any incident of his period of active service.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board denied an earlier effective date for the Veteran's award of service-connected compensation for headaches and remanded claims for increased rating, service connection for a thoracolumbar spine disability, right shoulder disability, and acquired psychiatric disorder.
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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.