Citation Nr: 21042820
Decision Date: 07/13/21	Archive Date: 07/13/21

DOCKET NO. 14-26 033
DATE: July 13, 2021

ORDER

Entitlement to service connection for Parkinson's disease, to include as due to herbicide exposure, is dismissed.

Entitlement to service connection for dementia, to include as secondary to Parkinson's disease, is dismissed.

Entitlement to service connection for a psychiatric disorder other than dementia, including posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and depression, to include as secondary to Parkinson's disease and service-connected bilateral hearing loss, is dismissed.

Entitlement to service connection for a back disorder, to include as secondary to Parkinson's disease, is dismissed.

Entitlement to special monthly compensation (SMC) based on the need for aid and attendance or by reason of being housebound is dismissed.

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

FINDING OF FACT

In July 2021, the Board of Veterans' Appeals (Board) received notification of the Veteran's death in June 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 had active duty service from March 1964 to February 1968.

This case comes before the Board of Veterans' Appeals (Board) on appeal from February 2012 and October 2013 rating decisions by the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA).  

In July 2017, the Veteran testified at a Board before a Veterans Law Judge.  

In a December 2017 decision, the Board denied the claim for service connection for headaches and remanded the matters of service connection for Parkinson's disease, dementia, a psychiatric disorder other than dementia, a back disorder, SMC and TDIU for further development.  The Board again remanded the case for further development in May 2019.  In October 2020, the Board denied the claims.  

The Veteran appealed the October 2020 Board decision to the United States Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims (Court).  In June 2021, the Court granted a Joint Motion for Remand, vacated the October 2020 decision and remanded the case to the Board for action consistent with the terms of the Joint Motion for Remand.  

Dismissal Due to Death of the Veteran

Unfortunately, the Veteran died during the pendency of this 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 Veteran and must be dismissed for lack of jurisdiction.  38 U.S.C. § 7104(a); 38 C.F.R. § 20.1302.

A review of the record reflects that J.S. submitted a substitution request in July 2021, pending adjudication. The Board does not have jurisdiction to make determinations regarding basic eligibility to substitute in the first instance. 

In reaching this determination, the Board intimates no opinion as to the merits of the appeal or 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 the purposes of processing the claim to completion. 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).  

 

 

M. C. GRAHAM

Veterans Law Judge

Board of Veterans' Appeals

Attorney for the Board	K Hughes

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.