Citation Nr: 0814494 Decision Date: 05/02/08 Archive Date: 05/12/08 DOCKET NO. 04-16 200 ) DATE ) ) On appeal from the Department of Veterans Affairs Regional Office in San Diego, California THE ISSUE Entitlement to compensation for a right arm disability, pursuant to the provisions of 38 U.S.C.A. § 1151. REPRESENTATION Appellant represented by: Disabled American Veterans WITNESS AT HEARING ON APPEAL Appellant ATTORNEY FOR THE BOARD S. Coyle, Associate Counsel INTRODUCTION The veteran served on active duty from June 1960 to June 1963. This matter comes before the Board of Veterans' Appeals (Board) on appeal from a July 2002 rating decision by the Los Angeles, California, Regional Office (RO) of the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), which denied entitlement to the benefit currently sought on appeal. A hearing on this matter was held before the undersigned Veterans Law Judge sitting at the RO on February 11, 2008. A copy of the hearing transcript has been associated with the file. The appeal is REMANDED to the RO via the Appeals Management Center (AMC), in Washington, DC. VA will notify you if further action is required on your part. REMAND Pursuant to the Veterans Claims Assistance Act of 2000 (VCAA), VA has a duty to notify the veteran 1) of the evidence necessary to substantiate his claim; 2) of the information and evidence that he is responsible for providing; 3) of the evidence that VA will attempt to obtain; and 4) request that the veteran provide any evidence in his possession that pertains to his claim. See 38 U.S.C.A. §§ 5102, 5103(a) (West 2002); 38 C.F.R. § 3.159(b) (2003); Quartuccio v. Principi, 16 Vet. App. 183 (2002). On review of the claims folder, the RO has not issued the veteran a letter notifying him of the appropriate information regarding his claim for disability benefits pursuant to the provisions of 38 U.S.C.A. § 1151. There is a July 2005 letter notifying the veteran that it appears that all necessary evidence is already of record but that he should submit any evidence in his possession that pertains to the claim. The RO failed to notify the veteran of the elements of a claim for disability benefits pursuant to the provisions of 38 U.S.C.A. § 1151, the information and evidence that VA would seek to provide, and the information and evidence that the veteran was expected to provide. Accordingly, this case is REMANDED as follows: 1. The RO must review the claims folder and ensure that all notification and development action required by the VCAA are fully complied with and satisfied. Specifically, the RO should: (a) Notify the veteran of the information and evidence necessary to substantiate his claim disability benefits pursuant to the provisions of 38 U.S.C.A. § 1151. (b) Notify the veteran of the information and evidence he is responsible for providing; (c) Notify the veteran of the information and evidence VA will attempt to obtain, e.g., that VA will make reasonable efforts to obtain relevant records not in the custody of a Federal department or agency and will make as many requests as are necessary to obtain relevant records from a Federal department or agency; and (d) Request that the veteran provide any evidence in his possession that pertains to his claim. 2. Upon completion of the above requested development and any additional development deemed appropriate, the RO should readjudicate the claim for disability benefits pursuant to the provisions of 38 U.S.C.A. § 1151. All applicable laws and regulations should be considered. If the benefit sought on appeal remains denied, the appellant and his representative should be provided with a SSOC. An appropriate period of time should be allowed for response. The appellant has the right to submit additional evidence and argument on the matter or matters the Board has remanded. Kutscherousky v. West, 12 Vet. App. 369 (1999). This claim must be afforded expeditious treatment. The law requires that all claims that are remanded by the Board of Veterans' Appeals or by the United States Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims for additional development or other appropriate action must be handled in an expeditious manner. See 38 U.S.C.A. §§ 5109B, 7112 (West Supp. 2007). _________________________________________________ THOMAS J. DANNAHER Veterans Law Judge, Board of Veterans' Appeals Under 38 U.S.C.A. § 7252 (West 2002), only a decision of the Board of Veterans' Appeals is appealable to the United States Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims. This remand is in the nature of a preliminary order and does not constitute a decision of the Board on the merits of your appeal. 38 C.F.R. § 20.1100(b) (2007). Department of Veterans Affairs