The Veteran's effective date for the award of service connection for radiculopathy of the left lower extremity is granted as November 12, 2014.,The Veteran's appeal regarding a disability rating in excess of 10 percent prior to March 6, 2017 for the right lower extremity radiculopathy has been dismissed due to a claims processing rule deficiency.
The deciding factor: The Board found that there was some competent evidence of record noting radiculopathy to the left lower extremity in or around November 2014, during the pendency of the back disability increased rating claim and prior to October 7, 2019. Therefore, as the claim for increased rating of the back disability has remained pending since at least February 18, 2014, and as there is some competent evidence of record documenting left lower extremity radiculopathy as early as November 2014, the Board found that entitlement arose (whether radiculopathy of the left lower extremity existed or was diagnosed) prior to 2019 and during the pendency of the increased rating claim for the back. As such, and resolving reasonable doubt in the Veteran's favor, the effective date sought of November 12, 2014, for the award of service connection for radiculopathy of the left lower extremity is granted.
- Claimed conditions
- radiculopathy, back disability
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- October 30, 2024
- Citation
- A24070163
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 2,062 · Granted: 34% (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 A24070163.
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A dismissal means the Board did not decide the issue on its merits — usually because it was withdrawn or had become moot.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.
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- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has decided to remand the case due to incomplete service treatment records and a need for additional VA examination. The Veteran's back disability is being reviewed again with new evidence.
- Remanded (sent back)
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- Granted
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