Citation Nr: 1322351	
Decision Date: 07/12/13    Archive Date: 07/18/13

DOCKET NO.  11-34 312	)	DATE
	)
	)

On appeal from the
Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Regional Office (RO)
in Detroit, Michigan


THE ISSUES

1.  Entitlement to an initial disability rating for instability of the right knee in excess of 10 percent. 

2.  Entitlement to a disability rating for arthritis of the right knee in excess of 10 percent. 

3.  Entitlement to an initial disability rating for degenerative disc disease of the lumbar spine in excess of 10 percent. 


REPRESENTATION

Appellant (the Veteran) is represented by: The Marine Corps League


ATTORNEY FOR THE BOARD

L. Cramp, Counsel
INTRODUCTION

The Veteran had active service from November 1989 to May 1990 and from December 1990 to November 1992.  

This appeal comes before the Board of Veterans' Appeals (Board) from an October 2010 rating decision of the RO in Detroit, Michigan.

The appeal is REMANDED to the RO via the Appeals Management Center (AMC) in Washington, DC.  VA will notify the Veteran if further action is required.


REMAND

In the VA Form 9, accepted in December 2011 to perfect the appeal, the Veteran requested a BVA hearing at a local VA office.  The hearing was never scheduled by the RO.  It does not appear that the Veteran's request for a hearing was withdrawn, and his representative reiterated the request in correspondence dated in December 2012.

Since the type of hearing requested by the Veteran is scheduled by the RO, the case is REMANDED for the following action: 

A Board hearing to be conducted at the RO should be scheduled in accordance with the docket number of this appeal (in the order that the request was received).  The Veteran should be notified of the time and place to report for the scheduled hearing.  

The Veteran has the right to submit additional evidence and argument on the matters the Board has remanded.  Kutscherousky v. West, 12 Vet. App. 369 (1999).

This appeal must be afforded expeditious treatment.  The law requires that all issues 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. 2012).


_________________________________________________
JOHN J. CROWLEY
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 the appeal.  38 C.F.R. § 20.1100(b) (2012).