Citation Nr: 21011980 Decision Date: 03/03/21 Archive Date: 03/03/21 DOCKET NO. 19-29 217 DATE: March 3, 2021 ORDER The appeal seeking service connection for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is dismissed. The appeal seeking an initial rating in excess of 40 percent for right knee limitation of extension, patellofemoral pain syndrome with degenerative arthritis, is dismissed. The appeal seeking to an initial rating in excess of 10 percent for right knee limitation of flexion, patellofemoral pain syndrome with degenerative arthritis, is dismissed. The appeal seeking an initial rating in excess of 10 percent for right knee instability is dismissed. The appeal seeking an initial compensable rating for bilateral hearing loss is dismissed. The appeal seeking an effective date prior to September 8, 2017, for the grant of service connection for right knee limitation of extension, patellofemoral pain syndrome with degenerative arthritis, is dismissed. The appeal seeking an effective date prior to September 8, 2017, for the grant of service connection for right knee limitation of flexion, patellofemoral pain syndrome with degenerative arthritis, is dismissed. The appeal seeking an effective date prior to September 8, 2017, for the grant of service connection for bilateral hearing loss, is dismissed. The appeal seeking an effective date prior to September 8, 2017, for the grant of service connection for tinnitus, is dismissed. FINDING OF FACT According to the Social Security Administration (SSA), the Veteran died in February 2021, before a decision by the Board on these matters was promulgated. CONCLUSION OF LAW Due to the death of the Veteran, the Board has no jurisdiction at this time to adjudicate the merits of his appeal seeking the following: service connection for PTSD; an initial rating in excess of 40 percent for right knee limitation of extension; an initial rating in excess of 10 percent for right knee limitation of flexion; an initial rating in excess of 10 percent for right knee instability; an initial compensable rating for bilateral hearing loss; and an effective date prior to September 8, 2017, for the grant of service connection for right knee limitation of extension, right knee limitation of flexion, bilateral hearing loss, and tinnitus. 38 U.S.C. § 7104(a); 38 C.F.R. § 20.1302. REASONS AND BASES FOR FINDING AND CONCLUSION The appellant is a Veteran who served on active duty from February 1980 to March 1981. This case comes to the Board of Veterans’ Appeals (Board) on appeal of May 2018, June 2018, and May 2020 rating decisions of a Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Regional Office (RO). In February 2021, before the Board could consider the appeal, VA received notification that the Veteran had died in February 2021; his death was confirmed by the SSA, a Federal agency. In the absence of evidence to the contrary, a finding of fact of death made by another Federal agency will be accepted as proof of death. 38 C.F.R. § 3.211(g). As there is no evidence to the contrary, the Board accepts the finding by the SSA as proof of the Veteran’s death during the pendency of the appeal and before the Board promulgated a decision on the appeal seeking the following: service connection for PTSD; an initial rating in excess of 40 percent for right knee limitation of extension; an initial rating in excess of 10 percent for right knee limitation of flexion; an initial rating in excess of 10 percent for right knee instability; an initial compensable rating for bilateral hearing loss; and an effective date prior to September 8, 2017, for the grant of service connection for right knee limitation of extension, right knee limitation of flexion, bilateral hearing loss, and tinnitus. As the Veteran died during the pendency of the appeal, as a matter of law his appeal does not survive his death. Thus, the appeal must be dismissed for lack of jurisdiction. 38 U.S.C. § 7104(a); 38 C.F.R. § 20.1302; 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). 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 claims to completion. Such request must be filed not later than one year after the date of the Veteran’s death. 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; 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). George R. Senyk Veterans Law Judge Board of Veterans’ Appeals Attorney for the Board Debbie Breitbeil, 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.