Citation Nr: 1813746	
Decision Date: 03/07/18    Archive Date: 03/14/18

DOCKET NO.  15-16 462	)	DATE
	)
	)

On appeal from the
Department of Veterans Affairs Regional Office in Togus, Maine


THE ISSUE

Entitlement to service connection for hypertension.  


REPRESENTATION

Veteran represented by:	Maine Veterans' Services


ATTORNEY FOR THE BOARD

J. R. Higgins, Associate Counsel


INTRODUCTION

The Veteran served on active duty in the United States Air Force from September 1954 to June 1958.  

This matter is before the Board of Veterans' Appeal (Board) on appeal from an August 2014 rating decision issued by the Department of Veteran Affairs (VA) Regional Office (RO) in Togus, Maine.  

This appeal was processed using the Virtual VA/VBMS paperless claim processing system.  Accordingly, any future consideration of this Veteran's case should take into account the existence of this electronic record.

This appeal has been advanced on the Board's docket pursuant to 38 C.F.R. § 20.900(c) (2017).  38 U.S.C. § 7107(a)(2) (2012).


FINDING OF FACT

In January 2018, VA was notified that the Veteran died during the pendency of the appeal.


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 FINDING AND CONCLUSION

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 offers 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 Veteran's death.  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 ...."  See 38 U.S.C. § 5121A (2012); 38 C.F.R. § 3.1010 (b) (2017). 

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).  


ORDER

The appeal is dismissed.  



____________________________________________
MICHAEL MARTIN
Veterans Law Judge, Board of Veterans' Appeals



Department of Veterans Affairs