The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for service connection and rating issues, including a TDIU claim. The case is being returned to the RO for further development.
The deciding factor: The Veteran’s attorney failed to timely submit a formal claim for a total disability rating based on individual unemployability (TDIU), which delayed the adjudication of his claims.
- Claimed conditions
- schizoaffective disorder with psychotic episodes, bipolar disorder with psychosis
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- November 20, 2020
- Citation
- 20074724
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 1,446 · Granted: 21% (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 20074724.
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 claim for an earlier effective date for the grant of service connection for bipolar disorder with psychosis is granted, as it was received on November 17, 2010, which is later than when entitlement arose due to VA treatment records submitted during the appeal period.
- Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claim for service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder, including bipolar disorder with psychosis, finding that his pre-existing condition clearly and unmistakably existed prior to service and was not aggravated by service beyond its natural progression.
- Dismissed
The Veteran's appeal for service connection for bipolar disorder with psychosis was improperly docketed under the AMA review system and must be dismissed because a legacy appeal is still pending.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has decided to remand the Veteran's claims due to the need for updated VA treatment records and further investigation of a newly-reported in-service stressor.
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