Citation Nr: 21029733
Decision Date: 05/14/21	Archive Date: 05/14/21

DOCKET NO. 10-15 477
DATE:    May 14, 2021

REMANDED

Entitlement to waiver of recovery of an overpayment of VA compensation benefits in the amount of $18,967.20, to include the underlying question of whether the overpayment was properly created, is remanded.

REASONS FOR REMAND

The Veteran served on active duty from November 1985 to May 1987.

This matter comes before the Board of Veterans' Appeals (Board) on appeal from an August 2008 decision by the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Regional Office (RO).

In December 2011, the Veteran testified before the undersigned Veterans Law Judge. A transcript of the hearing is associated with the record.

In April 2012, the Board remanded the issue on appeal, instructing the AOJ to conduct an investigation into allegations of misuses of the Veteran's funds during his incarceration. The RO conducted an investigation in May 2014, undertaking additional development as directed by the April 2012 Board remand but did not issue a supplemental statement of the case (SSOC) before returning the case to the Board. A remand by the Board confers on the Veteran, as a matter of law, the right to compliance with the remand. Stegall v. West, 11 Vet. App. 268 (1998). Thus, this matter must be remanded for issuance of an SSOC. 38 C.F.R. § 19.31(c).

The matters are REMANDED for the following action:

1. Clarify that all development ordered in the April 2012 Board remand has been completed. 

2. Readjudicate the issue of whether the overpayment at issue, in the amount of $18,967.20, was properly created.

3. If the overpayment is found to have been properly created, refer the issue of entitlement to waiver of recovery of an overpayment of VA compensation benefits in the amount of $18,967.20 to the Committee on Waivers and Compromises for adjudication.

4. If any benefit sought on appeal remains denied, issue a SSOC that considers all evidence added to the record since the March 2010 SOC.

 

 

H. N. SCHWARTZ

Veterans Law Judge

Board of Veterans' Appeals

Attorney for the Board	A. Labi, 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 This decision is not precedential and does not establish VA policies or interpretations of general applicability. 38 C.F.R. § 20.1303.