Citation Nr: 22011502
Decision Date: 03/01/22	Archive Date: 03/01/22

DOCKET NO. 19-06 928
DATE: March 1, 2022

ORDER

The petition to reopen the previously denied claim of entitlement to service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder is dismissed. 

Entitlement to service connection for a left hip condition, to include as secondary to lumbosacral strain, is dismissed.

Entitlement to service connection for a right hip condition, to include as secondary to lumbosacral strain, is dismissed.

Entitlement to a rating in excess of 40 percent for prostatitis is dismissed.

FINDING OF FACT

The Veteran died in January 2022. 

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 served on active duty from October 1966 to May 1967.  

This matter comes before the Board of Veterans' Appeals (Board) on appeal from Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Regional Office (RO) rating decisions.

On his May 2020 substantive appeal and September 2020 correspondence from the Veteran's attorney, the Veteran requested a virtual hearing before a Veterans Law Judge (VLJ) at a local VA office but unfortunately passed away before the scheduled hearing.  

The Veteran's appeal has been advanced on the docket.  38 C.F.R. § 20.902. 

Death Dismissal

1. The petition to reopen the previously denied claim of entitlement to service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder 

2. Entitlement to service connection for a left hip condition, to include as secondary to lumbosacral strain

3. Entitlement to service connection for a right hip condition, to include as secondary to lumbosacral strain

4. Entitlement to a rating in excess of 40 percent for prostatitis 

Unfortunately, the appellant died during the pendency of the appeal.  As a matter of law, appellants' claims do not survive their deaths.  Therefore, this appeal must be dismissed.  38 U.S.C. § 7104(a); 38 C.F.R. § 20.1302.

There are, however, provisions in place to allow for an eligible person to take the Veteran's place in his appeal in order to get a final decision.  This process is called substitution.  The request to be substituted must be filed within one year of the Veteran's death.  38 C.F.R. § 3.1010(b).  To file a request for substitution, you may use VA Form 21P-0847, "Request for Substitution of Claimant Upon Death of Claimant," which can be found online here: https://www.vba.va.gov/pubs/forms/VBA-21P-0847-ARE.pdf. 

The completed form may be submitted electronically via ACCESSVA.  The web address for ACCESSVA is https://eauth.va.gov/accessva/?cspSelectFor=dmhs.  Alternatively, you may mail the completed form to:

Department of Veterans Affairs

Pension Intake Center

PO Box 5365

Janesville, WI 53547-5365

You may also submit the form directly to your nearest VA regional office.  To find a VA regional office nearest you go to https://www.va.gov/find-locations/?facilityType=benefits.

Please note that only certain persons are eligible for substitution.  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).  There is a helpful factsheet that explains who is eligible for accrued benefits here: https://benefits.va.gov/BENEFITS/factsheets/general/Accrued.pdf

 

 

C. CRAWFORD

Veterans Law Judge

Board of Veterans' Appeals

Attorney for the Board	A. Kuzniar, 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.