Citation Nr: 18143090
Decision Date: 10/18/18	Archive Date: 10/17/18

DOCKET NO. 13-29 564
DATE:	October 18, 2018
ORDER
The appeal is dismissed.
FINDING OF FACT
The Board has been notified by the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Regional Office, Nashville, that the Veteran died in July 2018.
CONCLUSION OF LAW
Due to the death of the Veteran, the Board has no jurisdiction to adjudicate the merits of this appeal at this time. 38 U.S.C. § 7104 (a) (2012); 38 C.F.R. § 20.1302 (2017).
REASONS AND BASES FOR FINDINGSAND CONCLUSION
The Veteran had active service from March 1971 to December 1973, and from March 1987 to November 2000.
1. Entitlement to a rating in excess of 10 percent prior to May 28, 2015 and 20 percent thereafter for degenerative joint and disc disease of the lumbar spine
2. Entitlement to a rating in excess of 10 percent for traumatic arthritis, left knee
3. Entitlement to a rating in excess of 10 percent for traumatic arthritis, right knee 
4. Entitlement to a rating in excess of 10 percent for traumatic arthritis, left shoulder
5. Entitlement to a rating in excess of 20 percent for gout is denied.
6. Entitlement to a rating in excess of 10 percent for left elbow osteoarthritis status post left biceps tendon rupture repair with tophus nodules 
7. Entitlement to a rating in excess of 10 percent for right elbow osteoarthritis with tophus nodules 
8. Entitlement to a compensable rating for tinea pedis with onychomycosis, tinea corporis, and eczema 
9. Entitlement to an initial rating in excess of 20 percent for left lower extremity radiculopathy 
10. Entitlement to an initial rating in excess of 10 percent for right lower extremity radiculopathy 
11. Entitlement to TDIU prior to May 28, 2015 
Unfortunately, the Veteran died during the pendency of the appeal. As a matter of law, veterans’ 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 Veteran and must be dismissed for lack of jurisdiction. See 38 U.S.C. § 7104 (a) (2012); 38 C.F.R. § 20.1302 (2017).
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 (2017). 
The Board’s dismissal of this appeal does not affect the right of an eligible person to file a request to be substituted as the appellant for purposes of processing the claim to completion. Such request must be filed not later than one year after the date of the appellant’s death. See 38 U.S.C. § 5121A (2012); 38 C.F.R. § 3.1010 (b) (2017). A person eligible for substitution includes “a living person who would be eligible to receive accrued benefits due to the claimant under section 5121(a) of this title....” 38 U.S.C. § 5121A (2012); see 38 C.F.R. § 3.1010 (a) (2017). An eligible party seeking substitution in an appeal that has been dismissed by the Board due to the death of the Veteran should file a request for substitution with the VA office from which the claim originated (listed on the first page of this decision). 38 C.F.R. § 3.1010 (b) (2017).

 
MICHAEL D. LYON
Veterans Law Judge
Board of Veterans’ Appeals
ATTORNEY FOR THE BOARD	R.N. Poulson, Counsel