Citation Nr: 18154939
Decision Date: 12/03/18	Archive Date: 11/30/18

DOCKET NO. 13-07 556
DATE:	December 3, 2018
ORDER
The appeal is dismissed.
FINDING OF FACT
On October 18, 2018, the Board was notified that the Veteran had passed away.
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); 38 C.F.R. § 20.1302.
REFERRED
The issue of entitlement to service connection for bladder cancer was raised in a July 2017 statement.  An August 2017 rating decision denied the claim and the Veteran timely filed a Notice of Disagreement.  However, because a Statement of the Case has not yet been prepared, an appeal could not be perfected and the matter has not been certified to the Board.  The bladder cancer claim is referred to the Agency of Original Jurisdiction (AOJ) for appropriate action given the Veteran’s death during the pendency of that claim.
REASONS AND BASES FOR FINDING AND CONCLUSION
The Veteran had multiple issues pending on appeal to the Board:  (1) service connection for peripheral neuropathy of the lower extremities; (2) service connection for peripheral neuropathy of the upper extremities; (3) entitlement to an earlier effective date for the grant of service connection for hypertension; (4) entitlement to a compensable rating for hypertension; (5) entitlement to a compensable rating for the left medial thigh scar; (6) entitlement to a compensable rating for the chest scar extending inferior to the hypogastric area; (7) entitlement to a compensable rating for the right hip scar; (8) entitlement to a compensable rating for the right testicular removal scar; (9) entitlement to a compensable rating for limited extension of the left hip; (10) entitlement to a compensable rating for limited abduction and adduction of the left hip; (11) entitlement to a rating in excess of 10 percent for limited flexion of the left hip; (12) entitlement to a rating in excess of 10 percent for restrictive lung disease; (13) entitlement to a rating in excess of 30 percent for coronary artery disease (CAD); (14) entitlement to a total rating based on individual unemployability (TDIU) prior to May 2, 2016; and (15)  entitlement to dependents’ educational assistance prior to May 2, 2016.
Unfortunately, the Veteran 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 Veteran and must be dismissed for lack of jurisdiction.  38 U.S.C. § 7104(a); 38 C.F.R. § 20.1302.
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.
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 Veteran’s death.  38 U.S.C. § 5121A; 38 C.F.R. § 3.1010(b).  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; 38 C.F.R. § 3.1010(a).  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 (listed on the first page of this decision).  38 C.F.R. § 3.1010(b).
 
MICHELLE L. KANE
Veterans Law Judge
Board of Veterans’ Appeals
ATTORNEY FOR THE BOARD	Kerry Hubers, Counsel