Citation Nr: 20007262 Decision Date: 01/28/20 Archive Date: 01/28/20 DOCKET NO. 16-37 586 DATE: January 28, 2020 ORDER Entitlement to a rating in excess of 10 percent for degenerative joint disease of the left knee is dismissed. FINDINGS OF FACT 1. In December 2019, the Veteran submitted a VA Form 10182, requesting that her “left knee condition in excess of 10%,” in addition to the other claims at issue on appeal, be transferred into the Appeals Modernization Act (AMA) system and placed on the hearing docket. 2. Entitlement to a rating in excess of 10 percent for degenerative joint disease of the left knee is reasonably encompassed by the Veteran’s VA Form 10182, and is therefore considered to have been placed in the AMA system for further consideration. Therefore, the Board does not have jurisdiction over the matter within the legacy system, and it must be dismissed. CONCLUSION OF LAW The criteria for dismissal of entitlement to a rating in excess of 10 percent for degenerative joint disease of the left knee have been met. 38 U.S.C. § 7105; 38 C.F.R. § 20.205. REASONS AND BASES FOR FINDINGS AND CONCLUSION 1. Entitlement to a rating in excess of 10 percent for degenerative joint disease of the left knee The Veteran served on active duty in the United States Army from July 1979 to September 1990. The Board thanks her for her service to the United States. This matter comes before the Board of Veterans’ Appeals (Board) on appeal of a rating decision issued by the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA). In February 2019, the Board remanded claims of entitlement to service connection for a left shoulder disability, service connection for a right shoulder disability, a rating in excess of 30 percent for status post right knee arthroplasty, a rating in excess of 10 percent for degenerative joint disease of the left knee, a rating in excess of 10 percent for left knee instability, a rating in excess of 10 percent for lumbar spondylosis, and a total disability rating for compensation purposes based on individual unemployability (TDIU). The agency of original jurisdiction (AOJ) issued a Supplemental Statement of the Case in November 2019, which continued the denials of the claims listed above. In December 2019, the Veteran submitted a VA Form 10182, Decision Review Request: Board Appeal, in which she requested that her claims, including a claim of entitlement to a “left knee condition in excess of 10 percent” be placed in the AMA system, and that she be given a hearing before a Veterans Law Judge. The Veteran’s claim for a rating in excess of 10 percent for left knee instability in the AMA system, but kept the claim for rating in excess of 10 percent for degenerative joint disease of the left knee in the legacy system. The Board finds that a reasonable reading of the Veteran’s selection of the AMA hearing docket for “left knee condition in excess of 10%” includes all aspects of her service-connected left knee disability. She did not expressly indicate in her VA Form 10182 that she wished to appeal only one of the two left knee ratings, and the Board finds it unlikely that she would request a hearing on one left knee rating and not the other. Therefore, this legacy appeal has been eliminated by the Veteran’s election to participate in the AMA system. Her claim of entitlement to a rating in excess of 10 percent for degenerative joint disease of the left knee will be adjudicated, along with the other claims on appeal, after she is afforded a hearing before a Veterans Law Judge, which will be scheduled at a later date. The Veteran will be informed of the date, time, and location of her Board hearing in separate correspondence. In sum, as the Board does not have jurisdiction over the matter at issue at this time, it must be dismissed herein. See 38 U.S.C. § 7105; 38 C.F.R. § 20.205. M. C. GRAHAM Veterans Law Judge Board of Veterans’ Appeals Attorney for the Board D. Reed, Associate Counsel The Board’s decision in this case is binding only with respect to the instant matter decided. This decision is not precedential, and does not establish VA policies or interpretations of general applicability. 38 C.F.R. § 20.1303.