Citation Nr: 21042666 Decision Date: 07/13/21 Archive Date: 07/13/21 DOCKET NO. 17-28 887 DATE: July 13, 2021 ORDER Entitlement to service connection for left upper extremity peripheral neuropathy, to include as due to herbicide exposure is dismissed. Entitlement to service connection for right upper extremity peripheral neuropathy, to include as due to herbicide exposure is dismissed. Entitlement to service connection for left lower extremity peripheral neuropathy, to include as due to herbicide exposure is dismissed. Entitlement to service connection for right lower extremity peripheral neuropathy, to include as due to herbicide exposure is dismissed. FINDING OF FACT 1. In November 2020, prior to the promulgation of this decision in the appeal, the Board of Veterans' Appeals (Board) received notification from a Regional Office (RO) that entitlement to service connection for left upper extremity peripheral neuropathy, right upper extremity peripheral neuropathy, left lower extremity peripheral neuropathy of the femoral nerve, left lower extremity peripheral neuropathy of the sciatic nerve, right lower extremity peripheral neuropathy of the femoral nerve, and right lower extremity peripheral neuropathy of the sciatic nerve effective August 1, 2014 had been established. CONCLUSIONS OF LAW 1. The criteria for dismissal of the claim of entitlement to service connection for left upper extremity peripheral neuropathy, to include as due to herbicide exposure have been met. 38 U.S.C. § 7105; 38 C.F.R. §§ 19.38, 19.55, 20.903. 2. The criteria for dismissal of the claim of entitlement to service connection for right upper extremity peripheral neuropathy, to include as due to herbicide exposure have been met. 38 U.S.C. § 7105; 38 C.F.R. §§ 19.38, 19.55, 20.903. 3. The criteria for dismissal of the claim of entitlement to service connection for left lower extremity peripheral neuropathy, to include as due to herbicide exposure have been met. 38 U.S.C. § 7105; 38 C.F.R. §§ 19.38, 19.55, 20.903. 4. The criteria for dismissal of the claim of entitlement to service connection for right lower extremity peripheral neuropathy, to include as due to herbicide exposure have been met. 38 U.S.C. § 7105; 38 C.F.R. §§ 19.38, 19.55, 20.903. REASONS AND BASES FOR FINDING AND CONCLUSIONS The Veteran had honorable active duty service with the United States Navy from September 1959 to August 1983. This matter is before the Board on appeal from a May 2015 rating decision of a Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) RO. In April 2018, the Veteran and his spouse testified at a hearing before the undersigned Veterans Law Judge (VLJ). A transcript of the hearing has been associated with the Veteran's electronic claims file. In July 2018, the Board remanded the issues for further development. Then in February 2020, the Board issued a decision which denied entitlement to service connection for left upper extremity peripheral neuropathy, right upper extremity peripheral neuropathy, left lower extremity peripheral neuropathy, and right lower extremity peripheral neuropathy, to include as due to herbicide exposure. The Veteran appealed the Board's decision to the United States Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims (Court). In November 2020, the Veteran and the Secretary of the Veterans Affairs (collectively, as parties) filed a Joint Motion for Remand (JMR). The parties requested that the Court vacate the Board's February 2020 decision and remand the matter for further consideration and instructions consistent with the JMR. The JMR stipulated that the Board failed to provide an adequate statement of reasons or bases by failing to explain how it determined that the evidence did not show that the Veteran had in country service in the Republic of Vietnam. On remand the Court stated that the Board must provide an adequate statement of reasons or bases, determining whether the Veteran's Navy service fell within the proximity described in Procopio and section 1116A(d). However, in that same month in November 2020 a rating decision was issued which granted service connection for left upper extremity peripheral neuropathy, right upper extremity peripheral neuropathy, left lower extremity peripheral neuropathy of the femoral nerve, left lower extremity peripheral neuropathy of the sciatic nerve, right lower extremity peripheral neuropathy of the femoral nerve, and right lower extremity peripheral neuropathy of the sciatic nerve effective August 1, 2014. Furthermore, the Board notes that exposure to herbicide in the Republic of Vietnam, during the Vietnam Era, has been conceded. See VA Memo, and Logbooks, dated in October 2020. Service Connection 1. Entitlement to service connection for left upper extremity peripheral neuropathy is dismissed. See section 4. 2. Entitlement to service connection for right upper extremity peripheral neuropathy is dismissed. See section 4. 3. Entitlement to service connection for left lower extremity peripheral neuropathy is dismissed. See section 4. 4. Entitlement to service connection for right lower extremity peripheral neuropathy is dismissed. The Board may dismiss any appeal which fails to allege specific error of fact or law in the determination being appealed. 38 U.S.C. § 7105. In the present case, prior to certification to the Board, in a November 2020 Rating Decision, the Veteran was granted entitlement to service connection for peripheral neuropathy in all extremities, as discussed above. In the November 2020 Rating Decision, the RO specifically considered the claim as of the date of the receipt of the previously denied claim, making service connection effective back to August 1, 2014. No other disabilities remain on appeal in this case. The Board also notes that exposure to herbicide in the Republic of Vietnam during the time of the Vietnam Era has been conceded based on records confirming the Veteran was in a Navy ship which was in the offshore waterways of the Republic of Vietnam. See VA Memo, and Logbooks, dated in October 2020, Rating Decision Narrative received November 2020. Accordingly, there is no justiciable case or controversy before the Board, and the issue is dismissed. 38 U.S.C. § 7105. B. MULLINS Veterans Law Judge Board of Veterans' Appeals Attorney for the Board Associate Counsel, C. Parnell 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.