Citation Nr: 0811442 Decision Date: 04/07/08 Archive Date: 04/23/08 DOCKET NO. 03-16 520 ) DATE ) On appeal from the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Regional Office (RO) in Hartford, Connecticut THE ISSUE Entitlement to service connection for residuals of an injury to the lumbar spine. REPRESENTATION Appellant represented by: Michael R. Viterna, Attorney ATTORNEY FOR THE BOARD M. Vavrina, Counsel INTRODUCTION This matter to the Board of Veterans' Appeals (Board) initially arose from a June 2002 rating decision in which the RO declined to reopen the veteran's claim for service connection for recurrent lumbosacral strain (recharacterized as residuals of an injury to the lumbar spine) on the basis that evidence relating the disability to service had not been received. The veteran filed a notice of disagreement (NOD) in July 2002, and the RO issued a statement of the case (SOC) in April 2003. The veteran filed a substantive appeal (via a VA Form 9, Appeal to Board of Veterans' Appeals) in May 2003. In May 2005, the Board granted the veteran's petition to reopen his claim for service connection for a back disability and remanded the matter of service connection for residuals of an injury to the lumbar spine, on the merits, for additional development. In April 2006, the veteran indicated that he wanted to withdraw his request for a personal hearing before a Decision Review Officer at the RO. In a February 2007 decision, the Board denied the veteran's claim for service connection for residuals of an injury to the lumbar spine. The veteran appealed the Board's February 2007 decision to the United States Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims (Court). In a November 2007 single-judge Memorandum Decision, the Court vacated the Board's February 2007 decision and dismissed the appeal for lack of jurisdiction, after the appellant's counsel informed the Court that the veteran had died on October [redacted], 2007. Judgment was entered in December 2007. As a final preliminary matter, the Board notes that, in February 2008, the veteran's surviving spouse filed a claim for burial benefits. As the claims file does not reflect that this matter has been adjudicated by the RO, the matter is referred to the RO for appropriate action. FINDINGS OF FACT 1. The veteran in this case served on active duty from April 1943 to December 1945. 2. On November 2, 2007, the veteran's attorney notified the Court and VA that the appellant died in October 2007. CONCLUSION OF LAW Due to the death of the appellant, the Board has no jurisdiction to adjudicate the merits of this claim. 38 U.S.C.A. § 7104(a) (West 2002); 38 C.F.R. § 20.1302 (2007). REASONS AND BASES FOR FINDINGS AND CONCLUSION Unfortunately, the appellant died during the pendency of the appeal. As a matter of law, appellants' claims do not survive their deaths. Zevalkink v. Brown, 102 F.3d 1236, 1243-44 (Fed. Cir. 1996); Smith v. Brown, 10 Vet. App. 330, 333-34 (1997); Landicho v. Brown, 7 Vet. App. 42, 47 (1994). This appeal on the merits has become moot by virtue of the death of the appellant and must be dismissed for lack of jurisdiction. See 38 U.S.C.A. § 7104(a) (West 2002); 38 C.F.R. § 20.1302 (2007). In reaching this determination, the Board intimates no opinion as to the merits of this appeal or to any derivative claim brought by a survivor of the veteran. 38 C.F.R. § 20.1106 (2007). ORDER The appeal is dismissed. JACQUELINE E. MONROE Veterans Law Judge, Board of Veterans' Appeals Department of Veterans Affairs