Citation Nr: 21031780
Decision Date: 05/24/21	Archive Date: 05/24/21

DOCKET NO. 16-47 974
DATE: May 24, 2021

ORDER

The appeal to reopen a claim to entitlement to service connection for contact dermatitis and nummular eczema is dismissed.

The appeal to reopen a claim to entitlement to service connection for hypertension is dismissed.

Entitlement to service connection for obstructive sleep apnea is dismissed.

Entitlement to service connection for erectile dysfunction is dismissed.

Entitlement to an effective date prior to April 30, 2012 for the grant of a 100 percent disability rating for service-connected coronary artery disease is dismissed.

Entitlement to special monthly compensation based on aid and attendance and/or housebound status is dismissed.

Entitlement to a total disability rating based on unemployability due to service-connected disabilities (TDIU) is dismissed. 

FINDING OF FACT

In April 2021, the Board was notified that the Veteran passed away in April 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

Unfortunately, the Veteran passed away during 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 appellant 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).

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The Board notes the record reflects that the Veteran's spouse submitted a request for substitution in May 2021.  To date, the agency of original jurisdiction has not adjudicated this request.  The surviving spouse should be assured this decision is purely administrative in nature regarding the Veteran's claims and no decision on the merits has been made.

 

 

Tiffany Dawson

Veterans Law Judge

Board of Veterans' Appeals

Attorney for the Board	C. P. Moore, 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.