Citation Nr: 21010176 Decision Date: 02/24/21 Archive Date: 02/24/21 DOCKET NO. 13-28 173A DATE: February 24, 2021 ISSUES 1. Entitlement to service connection for bilateral medial epicondylitis. 2. Entitlement to service connection for osteoarthritis in the left shoulder. 3. Entitlement to service connection for a left ankle strain. 4. Entitlement to service connection for arthritis in the left hand and right hand. ORDER The appeal of entitlement to service connection for bilateral medial epicondylitis is dismissed. The appeal of entitlement to service connection for osteoarthritis in the left shoulder is dismissed. The appeal of entitlement to service connection for left ankle strain is dismissed. The appeal of entitlement to service connection for arthritis in the left hand and right hand is dismissed. FINDINGS OF FACT 1. In January 2021, the Board received confirmation that the Veteran died the same month. 2. At the time of his death, the Veteran had claims pending. 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) (West 2014); 38 C.F.R. § 20.1302 (2018). REASONS AND BASES FOR FINDINGS AND CONCLUSIONS The Veteran had active service from June 1968 to January 1992. This matter comes to the Board of Veterans’ Appeals (Board) on appeal from a March 2010 rating decision by the Regional Office (RO) of the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) in Montgomery, Alabama. The Veteran testified before the undersigned Veterans Law Judge in October 2015. A transcript of the hearing has been associated with the electronic claims file. By way of background, this matter was previously before the Board in November 2020. In that November 2020 decision, the Board, in pertinent part, remanded the Veteran’s claims of entitlement to service connection for (1) bilateral wrist tendonitis and strain, (2) degenerative arthritis of the cervical spine, (3) bilateral medial epicondylitis, (4) left ankle strain, (5) osteoarthritis in the left shoulder and (6) arthritis in the left and right hand. The purpose of the Board’s remand was to obtain an Addendum Medical Opinion with respect to the etiology of this Veteran’s service connection claims. See November 24, 2020 BVA decision. In a subsequent December 2020 rating decision, the RO, granted the Veteran’s claims of entitlement to service connection for (1) bilateral wrist strain (claimed as muscle and joint pain), with an evaluation of 10 percent effective November 18, 2009 and (2) degenerative arthritis of the cervical spine (claimed as arthritis, neck and hip), with an evaluation of 10 percent effective November 18, 2009. See December 22, 2020 rating decision. The RO continued the denial of entitlement to service connection for bilateral medial epicondylitis, left ankle strain, osteoarthritis in the left shoulder and arthritis in the left and right hand. See December 21, 2020, Supplemental Statement of the Case (SSOC). These matters have since been returned to the Board for further appellate action. Unfortunately, the Veteran died in January 2021during 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. See 38 U.S.C. § 7104 (a) (West 2014); 38 C.F.R. § 20.1302 (2018). 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 (2018). 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 (West 2014); 38 C.F.R. § 3.1010 (b) (2018). 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 (West 2014); see 38 C.F.R. § 3.1010 (a) (2018). 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) (2018). Michael A. Pappas Veterans Law Judge Board of Veterans’ Appeals Attorney for the Board C. Little, 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.