The Veteran's appeal for service connection of an acquired psychiatric disorder, including depression, is dismissed due to the death of the Veteran during the pendency of the appeal.
The deciding factor: The Veteran passed away during the pendency of the appeal and the VA was notified in December 2020. As a matter of law, appellants' claims do not survive their deaths.
- Claimed conditions
- acquired psychiatric disorder, to include depression
- How they argued it
- Not specified
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- January 6, 2021
- Citation
- 21000811
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 21000811.
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A dismissal means the Board did not decide the issue on its merits — usually because it was withdrawn or had become moot.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 restless leg syndrome at a 10 percent rating and denied service connection for injury to teeth, while remanding the claims for an acquired psychiatric disorder, hemorrhoids, neck disability, and low back disability.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for a back disability, denied an increased rating for the right knee and psychiatric disorder, and granted an additional 10 percent rating for right knee instability.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the Veteran's claims for service connection for headaches, joint pain, fatigue, and an acquired psychiatric disorder to correct pre-decisional duty to assist errors.
- Partly granted
The Board granted a 10-percent rating for the Veteran's plantar wart right foot and service connection for tinnitus, while remanding several other claims for further development.
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