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Granted

The Board has determined that the appellant is recognized as the Veteran's surviving spouse for purposes of VA benefits due to continuous cohabitation and holding themselves out as husband and wife, despite a legal impediment.

The deciding factor: The Board found sufficient evidence showing continuous cohabitation and holding themselves out as husband and wife, and accepted the appellant’s statement that she had no knowledge of an impediment to 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 30, 2020
Citation
20050696

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 20050696.

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.

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