The Board granted the Veteran's appeal regarding the timeliness of his substantive appeal and remanded several issues for further development.
The deciding factor: The Veteran rebutted the presumption of regularity in mailing the SOC, and VA failed to consider his request for an extension timely. The errors constituted a waiver of the 60-day time limit to file a substantive appeal.
- Claimed conditions
- Degenerative disc disease and spondylosis of the thoracolumbar spine, Status-post C4-5 discectomy with spondylosis, Right hip strain, Ulcerative colitis
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- July 10, 2025
- Citation
- 25009048
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 Board granted service connection for plantar fasciitis on the right and left foot, left and right ankle strain, left and right knee osteoarthritis, and left and right hip strain, all secondary to service-connected back and bilateral lower extremity radiculopathy disabilities with weight gain/obesity as an intermediate step.
- Denied
The Board denied increased evaluations for the Veteran's service-connected conditions, finding that the current ratings accurately reflect the severity of his disabilities.
- Denied
The Board denied the veteran's claims for increased ratings for PTSD, right hip strain, lumbosacral strain, right knee meniscal tear, and left wrist sprain. The claim for service connection for cervical strain was remanded.
- Partly granted
The Board granted increased disability evaluations for right and left lower extremity radiculopathy of the sciatic nerve, but dismissed the appeal regarding service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder.
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