The Veteran's death pension benefits were denied because the appellant did not meet the requirements for recognition as a surviving spouse, including continuous cohabitation from the date of marriage to his death.
The deciding factor: The appellant and the Veteran had lived apart during their marriage due to the appellant’s claims of fraud and duress in obtaining the marriage, which was supported by evidence such as the July 2012 Original Petition for Annulment of Marriage and/or Alternatively Divorce filed by the Veteran.
- Claimed conditions
- Not specified in this decision
- How they argued it
- Not specified
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- March 2, 2021
- Citation
- 21011614
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 21011614.
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