The Veteran's left ankle disability is currently rated at 20 percent prior to October 11, 2020 and remanded for further development. Since October 11, 2020, the claim remains denied as there is no evidence of ankylosis.
The deciding factor: The Veteran's left ankle disability has not shown marked limitation of motion or ankylosis since October 11, 2020.
- Claimed conditions
- Left lateral collateral ligament sprain
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- January 3, 2022
- Citation
- 22000130
Veterans Law Judge
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 22000130.
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.
- Denied
The Board denied the veteran's claims for increased ratings for right and left lateral collateral ligament sprain, finding that his range of motion did not meet the criteria for a higher rating. The Board also remanded the claim for entitlement to a total disability rating based on individual unemployability (TDIU).
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claim for special monthly compensation based on the need of regular aid and attendance due to a pre-decisional duty-to-assist error, as recent evidence suggests a worsening of service-connected disabilities.
- Denied
The Veteran's claim for an earlier effective date for the grant of service connection for a left ankle disability is denied as there is no legal basis for assigning an earlier effective date due to the finality of the October 1991 rating decision.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's left ankle disability is rated at 10 percent prior to March 6, 2020, and a separate 10 percent rating for instability is granted. The TDIU claim is denied.,Service connection for a left knee disability and an acquired psychiatric disability are remanded due to insufficient evidence.
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