Citation Nr: 18149457 Decision Date: 11/09/18 Archive Date: 11/09/18 DOCKET NO. 18-20 023 DATE: November 9, 2018 ORDER Entitlement to payment of retroactive VA dependency and indemnity and compensation (DIC) benefits based on service connection for the cause of the Veteran’s death, for the period from October 1969 to 2007, is dismissed. FINDINGS OF FACT 1. A November 1969 rating decision granted DIC benefits based on service connection for the cause of the Veteran’s death, effective October 1, 1969. 2. VA has issued DIC benefit payments to the appellant, effective October 1, 1969. CONCLUSION OF LAW There being no justiciable case or controversy, the appellant’s claim of entitlement to payment of retroactive VA DIC benefits for the period from October 1969 to 2007 is dismissed. 38 U.S.C. §§ 7104, 7105 (West 2014); 38 C.F.R. § 20.101 (2017). REASONS AND BASES FOR FINDINGS AND CONCLUSION The Veteran served on active duty from November 1956 to November 1960, and died in October 1969. The appellant is the Veteran’s surviving spouse. This matter comes before the Board of Veterans’ Appeals (Board) on appeal of a September 2017 decision by the Pension Center located in the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Regional Office (RO) in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. While the January 2018 statement of the case listed the issue on appeal as entitlement to an earlier effective date for the grant of DIC benefits, the record reflects that the appellant is not alleging that she is entitled to an earlier effective date for DIC benefits. Rather, she contends that she started receiving DIC benefit payments in 2007, and that she is entitled to payment of retroactive DIC benefits for the period from October 1969 to 2007. Accordingly, the Board has recharacterized the issue on appeal, as listed on the first page of this decision. Earlier effective date for DIC benefits The appellant asserts that she began receiving DIC benefit payments in 2007, and requests retroactive payment of DIC benefits amounts for the period from October 1969 to 2007. See, e.g., March 2018 VA Form 9. The Board has jurisdiction where there is a question of law or fact on appeal to the Secretary. 38 U.S.C. § 7104; 38 C.F.R. § 20.101. The Board may dismiss any appeal which fails to allege specific error of fact or law in the determination being appealed. 38 U.S.C. § 7105(d)(5). A review of the record shows that the Veteran died in October 1969. The appellant’s original claim for DIC benefits was received on October 22, 1969. See October 1969 VA Form 21-534. A November 1969 rating decision granted DIC benefits based on service connection for the cause of the Veteran’s death, effective October 1, 1969 (the first of the month of the Veteran date of death because appellant’s DIC claim was received within one year of the Veteran’s death. See 38 C.F.R. § 3.400(c) (2017). A March 1970 VA letter notified the appellant of the grant of the DIC benefits, and listed the monthly DIC benefit amounts. For the reasons set forth below, the Board finds that the appellant has already been paid her DIC benefits for the period from October 1969 to 2007, and, therefore, the appeal must be dismissed as moot. Based on review of the record, it appears that the appellant is under a mistaken belief that she began receiving her DIC benefits in 2007. However, the evidence shows that she already received her DIC benefit payments from October 1969 to 2007. As noted above, a March 1970 VA letter notified the appellant of the grant of DIC benefits, and listed the monthly DIC benefit amounts. A VA Form 21-6798, which was sent to the appellant in December 1971, noted an increase in the appellant’s DIC benefit amounts, and listed the new monthly DIC benefit amounts. A February 1976 VA Form 20-8270, C&P Master Record Audit Writeout, listed the appellant’s benefit payments since October 1969, as well as current and future award data, and noted that the appellant’s benefit payment status as “active.” An April 1978 VA Form 24-0296 shows that the appellant enrolled in direct deposit of her DIC benefits to her personal bank account. A November 1982 VA Form 21-4138 shows that the appellant stated that she was receiving DIC benefits. An April 1996 VA Form 21-0537 shows that the appellant completed a marital status questionnaire in connection with her DIC benefit payments. See also April 2004 VA Form 21-0537. The only VA correspondence to the appellant in 2007 was a VA letter dated in December 2007, which informed the appellant of an increase in her monthly DIC benefits pursuant to a cost of living adjustment. It appears that the appellant misunderstood this letter to mean that she started receiving her DIC benefits as of 2007. However, the purpose of the letter was not to inform the appellant of the start of her DIC benefit payments; rather, it was to inform her of an increase in her DIC benefits. Based on the foregoing, the Board finds that appellant’s claim currently on appeal is moot because she has already been paid her DIC benefits from October 1969 to 2007. Thus, the Board finds that this issue should be dismissed as already granted and there is no justiciable case or controversy before the Board at this time with respect to this claim. 38 U.S.C. § 7105(d)(5). JONATHAN B. KRAMER Veterans Law Judge Board of Veterans’ Appeals ATTORNEY FOR THE BOARD J. Ragheb, Counsel