Citation Nr: 1604181	
Decision Date: 02/04/16    Archive Date: 02/11/16

DOCKET NO.  13-00 272A	)	DATE
	)
	)

On appeal from the
Department of Veterans Affairs Regional Office in St. Louis, Missouri


THE ISSUE

Entitlement to service connection for a left foot disability.


REPRESENTATION

Veteran represented by:	Disabled American Veterans


WITNESS AT HEARING ON APPEAL

Veteran


ATTORNEY FOR THE BOARD

M. Moore, Counsel


INTRODUCTION

The Veteran served on active duty for training from June to November 1977 and on active duty from July 1979 to October 1980.

This matter comes before the Board of Veterans' Appeals (Board) on appeal from a November 2011 rating decision of the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Regional Office (RO) in St. Louis, Missouri.

The appeal is REMANDED to the Agency of Original Jurisdiction (AOJ).  VA will notify the Veteran if further action on his part is required.


REMAND

The Veteran attended a Travel Board hearing before a Veterans Law Judge (VLJ) who is no longer employed at the Board in July 2014.  In November 2015, the Board sent the Veteran a letter asking whether he wished to attend another hearing before the Board.  38 C.F.R. § 20.704, 20.707 (2015).  The Veteran responded in December 2015 that he wished to attend a new Travel Board hearing before a different VLJ.  However, he not received or been scheduled for a new Travel Board hearing.  

Due process concerns thus require that the case be remanded to the RO for the scheduling of a hearing before the Board.  38 C.F.R. §§ 20.700(a), 20.703, 20.1304(a) (2015).  The case is remanded to the St. Louis RO so that it may schedule a Travel Board hearing and send notice of the hearing to the Veteran and his representative.  

Accordingly, the case is REMANDED for the following action:

The RO must schedule the Veteran for a Travel Board hearing before a member of the Board.  The RO must notify the Veteran and his representative of the date and time of the scheduled hearing in accordance with 38 C.F.R. § 20.704(b) (2015).  This notification must be documented in the claims file.  After the hearing has been held, or if the Veteran withdraws his hearing request or fails to report for the scheduled hearing, the claims folder should be returned to the Board for further appellate review. 

The Veteran has the right to submit additional evidence and argument on the matter the Board has remanded.  See 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 or by the United States Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims (Court) for additional development or other appropriate action must be handled in an expeditious manner.  38 U.S.C.A. §§ 5109B, 7112 (West 2002 & Supp. 2015).



_________________________________________________
MICHAEL A. HERMAN
Veterans Law Judge, Board of Veterans' Appeals

Under 38 U.S.C.A. § 7252 (West 2014), only a decision of the Board is appealable to the Court.  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) (2015).