Citation Nr: 21021688
Decision Date: 04/13/21	Archive Date: 04/13/21

DOCKET NO. 19-31 266
DATE: April 13, 2021

ORDER

The Veteran’s appeal for service connection for bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus is dismissed.

FINDING OF FACT

On April 8, 2021, the Board was notified that the Veteran died in March 2021.

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); 38 C.F.R. § 20.1302.

REASONS AND BASES FOR FINDING AND CONCLUSION

The Veteran served on active duty from October 1962 to October 1964.  He died in March 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.  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.  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).  

The Board notes that the Veteran’s surviving spouse has filed a claim for DIC (dependency and indemnity compensation) and accrued benefits, but the AOJ (agency of original jurisdiction) has not yet determined whether a substitution claim was received.  As of this decision, she still has ample time to file a claim or clarify her intent to be substituted in this appeal, which, again, may be filed no later than one year from the date of his death.

 

 

Nathaniel J. Doan

Veterans Law Judge

Board of Veterans’ Appeals

Attorney for the Board	A. Gibson

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.