Citation Nr: 22003294 Decision Date: 01/21/22 Archive Date: 01/21/22 DOCKET NO. 19-10 453 DATE: January 21, 2022 REMANDED Entitlement to an apportionment of the Veteran's VA disability compensation benefits for R.P., as a helpless child, is remanded. REASONS FOR REMAND The Veteran served on active duty from August 1987 to August 1991. The Appellant, L.C., is the mother of the Veteran's child, R.P. This matter comes before the Board of Veterans' Appeals (Board) on appeal from a July 2017 decision by the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Regional Office (RO), which, in relevant part, denied an apportionment to the Appellant on the basis that there was no evidence of financial hardship. In April 2019, the Appellant requested a videoconference hearing. She then changed the request, from a videoconference hearing to a virtual hearing in September 2020. By August 2021, the Appellant withdrew her request for a hearing. Therefore, her request for a hearing is considered withdrawn. Entitlement to an apportionment of the Veteran's VA disability compensation benefits to L.C. for the Veteran's child R.P., as a helpless child, is remanded. As indicated above, a July 2017 decision denied the Appellant's apportionment claim. The Appellant argues that she is entitled to a special apportionment of the Veteran's VA disability compensation benefits on the basis that their child, R.P., was a helpless child prior to the age of 18 and continues to be helpless. See NOD (November 2018). After a review of the evidence in this case, the Board has determined that the matter is not ripe for appellate review as all steps necessary to ensure the procedural and due process rights of the parties have not been completed. The Board finds that remand is necessary to ensure due process of law. As this case involves a simultaneously contested claim, the provisions of 38 U.S.C. § 7105A requires compliance with special procedural safeguards. See 38 C.F.R. §§ 19.100, 19.101, 19.102, 20.500, 20.501, 20.502, 20.503, 20.504, and 20.505. Specifically, 38 C.F.R. § 19.100 provides that, in a simultaneously contested claim, all interested parties are to be notified of the action taken by the originating agency and of the right and time limit for initiating an appeal, as well as notification of the right to a hearing and representation. Upon the filing of a notice of disagreement, all interested parties will be furnished a copy of the statement of the case (SOC). 38 C.F.R. § 19.101. When a substantive appeal (Form 9) is filed, the content will be furnished to the other contesting parties to the extent that it contains information which could directly affect the payment or potential payment of the benefit which is the subject of the contested claim. 38 C.F.R. § 19.102. In this case, the Veteran was not provided a copy of the content of the Appellant's Form 9, which was received by the RO in April 2019. Therefore, remand is required to ensure compliance with the contested claims procedures. In addition, the record indicates that there may be outstanding and relevant Social Security Administration (SSA) records that could show that R.P. was a helpless child prior to the age of 18 and has remained so. A remand is required to allow VA to request these records. The matter is REMANDED for the following action: 1. Ensure full compliance with the contested claims procedures outlined in 38 C.F.R. §§ 19.100-19.102 and 20.500-20.505. In doing so, furnish the Veteran a copy of the April 2019 Form 9 (with attachments). Afford the Veteran an appropriate time to respond. 2. Obtain the child's federal records from SSA. Document all requests for information as well as all responses in the claims file. 3. Readjudicate. C.A. SKOW Veterans Law Judge Board of Veterans' Appeals Attorney for the Board Pendleton, N. 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.