Citation Nr: 18150167 Decision Date: 11/14/18 Archive Date: 11/14/18 DOCKET NO. 15-13 034 DATE: November 14, 2018 ORDER The claim for service connection for bilateral hearing loss is dismissed due to the death of the Veteran. The claim for service connection for tinnitus is dismissed due to the death of the Veteran. FINDING OF FACT The Board of Veterans’ Appeals (Board) was notified in August 2018 that the Veteran has died. 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 (2018). REASONS AND BASES FOR FINDING AND CONCLUSION Unfortunately, the appellant died during the pendency of the appeal. As a matter of law, appellants’ 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 appellant and must be dismissed for lack of jurisdiction. See 38 U.S.C. § 7104 (a) (2012); 38 C.F.R. § 20.1302 (2018). 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 (2018). 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) (2018). 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) (2018). An eligible party seeking substitution in an appeal that has been dismissed by the Board due to the death of the claimant should file a request for substitution with the VA office from which the claim originated. 38 C.F.R. § 3.1010(b) (2018). MARJORIE A. AUER Veterans Law Judge Board of Veterans’ Appeals ATTORNEY FOR THE BOARD J. Andrew Ahlberg, Counsel