Citation Nr: 21067428 Decision Date: 11/04/21 Archive Date: 11/04/21 DOCKET NO. 18-43 218 DATE: November 4, 2021 ORDER 1. A rating in excess of 10 percent for lumbosacral strain is dismissed. 2. A rating in excess of 10 percent for right lower extremity radiculopathy and tremor is dismissed. 3. A rating in excess of 10 percent for left lower extremity radiculopathy and tremor is dismissed. 4. Special monthly compensation (SMC) based on loss of use of both lower extremities is dismissed. 5. A total disability rating based on individual unemployability (TDIU) is dismissed. 6. A death pension is dismissed. FINDING OF FACT The appellant died in October 2021, prior to the issuance of a final Board decision. CONCLUSION OF LAW Due to the death of the appellant, the Board has no jurisdiction to adjudicate the merits of this appeal at this time. 38 U.S.C. § 7104; 38 C.F.R. § 20.1302. REASONS AND BASES FOR FINDING AND CONCLUSION The Veteran served on active duty from March 1957 to January 1978. The Veteran died in August 2016 and the appellant was his surviving spouse. The case is on appeal from October 2016 and July 2018 rating decisions. In a September 2019 decision, the Board reopened service connection for prostate cancer and heart disease, granted service connection for prostate cancer, heart disease, and Parkinson's disease, and remanded the claims on appeal for additional development. Thereafter, in an October 2019 rating decision, the RO granted service connection for the cause of the Veteran's death. The decision also granted service connection for Parkinson's disease, heart disease, several disorders related to Parkinson's disease, and SMC based on housebound and the need for aid and attendance. As these claims have been granted in full, they are no longer before the Board. See Grantham v. Brown, 114 F.3d 1156 (Fed. Cir. 1997). 1. A rating in excess of 10 percent for lumbosacral strain. 2. A rating in excess of 10 percent for right lower extremity radiculopathy and tremor. 3. A rating in excess of 10 percent for left lower extremity radiculopathy and tremor. 4. SMC based on loss of use of both lower extremities. 5. A TDIU. 6. A death pension. Unfortunately, the appellant died during the pendency of the appeal. In October 2021, prior to a Board decision on the matter, the appellant's representative and her daughter submitted statements indicating that the appellant died earlier that month. In November 2021, a Social Security Administration database record was associated with the claims file that shows the appellant passed away in October 2021. 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. See 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 appellant's death. See 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; see 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. 38 C.F.R. § 3.1010(b). RYAN T. KESSEL Veterans Law Judge Board of Veterans' Appeals Attorney for the Board Jimerfield, David 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.