Citation Nr: 21004888
Decision Date: 01/28/21	Archive Date: 01/28/21

DOCKET NO. 15-05 679
DATE: January 28, 2021

ORDER

Entitlement to service connection for hypertension is dismissed.

FINDING OF FACT

In a February 2019 written statement, prior to the promulgation of a decision in the appeal, the Veteran specifically requested that the appeal regarding his claim of entitlement to service connection for hypertension be withdrawn, a fact reiterated by his representative in a November 2020 Brief.

CONCLUSION OF LAW

The criteria for dismissal of the Veteran’s claim for entitlement to service connection for hypertension have been met.  38 U.S.C. § 7105; 38 C.F.R. § 19.55.

Introduction

The Veteran served honorably on active duty in the United States Marine Corps during the Peacetime and Gulf War Era, from November 1983 to May 1994.

This matter comes before the Board of Veterans’ Appeals (Board) on appeal from a June 2012 Rating Decision issued by the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Regional Office (RO) in Montgomery, Alabama.

REASONS AND BASES FOR FINDING AND CONCLUSION

Entitlement to service connection for hypertension is dismissed.

An appeal may be withdrawn as to any or all issues involved in the appeal at any time before the Board promulgates a decision.  38 C.F.R. § 19.55.  Withdrawal may be made by the Veteran or his or her duly authorized representative.  Id.  To be effective, the withdrawal must be in writing except when the appeal is withdrawn on the record at a hearing.  Id.

In a signed, written statement dated February 7, 2019, the Veteran stated in pertinent part that he has an “appeal pending for service connection for hypertension vascular disease,” and that he is “requesting these issues be withdrawn upon receipt of this notice.”  The Veteran’s statement was submitted by his duly appointed representative.  The Veteran’s representative reiterated the Veteran’s request in a November 2020 Brief by stating, “[c]onsistent with [the Veteran’s] submission noted above, it is requested that his request for withdrawal of the claim for hypertension vascular disease be approved and the file closed.”

Accordingly, the Board does not have jurisdiction to review the matter on appeal and, thus, the issue must be dismissed.    

 

 

T. REYNOLDS

Veterans Law Judge

Board of Veterans’ Appeals

Attorney for the Board	E. Worsham, Attorney Advisor

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.