CUE claims - a TIP

[Berta]

Since the President has promised Accountability from the VA,that accountability should cover every aspect of the VA...health care as well as our claims.

I am filing another CUE claim and have been reviewing my October 2015  award letter many times,specifically the Evidence List and the 5103 waiver and the 

13 pieces of evidence they completely ignored.I could not understand why the director of my RO insisted that my award was correct and they had paid the full amount...but that the veteran was NOT 100% P & T under 1151.....an error that caused my appeal, but more importantly it was due to a 38 CFR 4.6 violation .

13 pierces of evidence and even if they only used one, each one was highly probative.

Every one of the 13 pieces of evidence stated clearly that the veteran was 100% P & T from a Section 1151 stroke.All in VA's possession at time of this decision, as well as had been sent many times before , 1992,93,93  , and listed and attached to the 5103 waiver and now I need to send it all in again.

 

The Evidence list is 3 pages long going back to 1984,but out of order, yet I wanted to be 150% sure of my CUE...and now I am! Yippee!

Another violation of my favorite regulation, 38 CFR 4.1 et al,specifically 4.6.    Delicious!

My tip...the initials of the person who prepared  the 5103 waiver I got ( one waiver for 2 separate claims) I realized were those of the same man who called me ,because I raised hoopla over this decision. I have his full name and proof that he called me from the Buffalo VARO (still on my Direct TV all log - I took a digital photo of that)and caller ID (I think), one of many calls back and forth to the RO in 2015-2016.

If you have the initials of anyone on any correspondence from the VARO that indicates ( in the upper right hand corner-the alphanumeric code)and if you have their name from any other contacts from the RO, and are filing a CUE claim, I suggest that you state as under the auspices of 38 USC 5109 and then state "due to the error made by "(initials and/or name) at the (name) Regional Office in a decision ( or within correspondence)  made on (date) that affected a proper award with the RO decision of ( date) and send them copies of anything that proves who they are and what they did that caused a CUE to your detriment.Then state the CUE.

The ROs know who these people are. But we have to begin to find out who they all are and document them by name/and/or initials within our appeals.

My VCAA rights were again violated as they were in 2009 and I asked for a remand. BVA concurred but found the VCAA issue moot when they awarded due to my evidence.  I dont want this to trigger a remand ,because it will-------and I intend to get this error fixed ASAP.

 

 

 

 

Edited January 23, 2017 by Berta

[Vync]

Berta,
That is great advice!

Don't rely solely on your DirecTV call log. I recommend you take pictures of it and/or get copies of your phone bill call log instead. I had one DirecTV box crap out on me and the replacement did not retain the call log.

[Berta]

Yeah thanks Vync...I took digital photos of the many calls I had from Buffalo RO as soon as they occurred from the Directv call log.screen...most were from the RO director....but the .Feb 19. 2015 was from the guy who actually violated my rights...and it snowballed into 2 CUEs I found in the decision and I named him right away in the CUE claim.I found another error too but it is an easy one they can fix...not a CUE basis ....yet....

Since I have proof of mailing the specific evidence, many times, which he verified on Feb 19,2015 they had...I am not enclosing it again until I have to....he can start looking for it.

My RO has pulled this crap on me Many times since 1995 and I wish I had reacted to that award letter sooner (did file the NOD and I-9 in time)but it was all 46 pages mainly of laws etc and I was burned out by the award.It awarded 2 CUEs and they only took 7-8 YEARS ,still at the VARO , until I asked the Nehmer people to adjudicate them both.

This is funny -one of them is still an open issue...I was saving that for some time in the future...he he.....

Most CUE claims are short and sweet but this one involves the Director and I had taken notes on it all step by step.

One more tip-----I realized the VARO copied and pasted some stuff from a prior award I had that was corrected by CUE....years ago.....  But they used the inaccurate ratings instead of reading that whole decision.

So I whipped out a CUE on that one too....and told them that not only have my rights been violated, this stuff has to be fixed before it gets to the BVA as the errors have corrupted my ability to properly appeal a decision that is still erroneous.

That is what I mean here when I say a valid CUE not ever challenged can screw up a claim for a long long time.

 

 

[allansc2005]

Berta,

Your wisdom helped me win my CUE case very quickly, and I'm sure you will prevail with your case as well.

Allan

[Berta]

Thank You Allan! I am so glad you filed a CUE claim! You are an official Cu-erino!And  an inspiration to others with potential CUE claims.

 

[Berta]

GEEZ, my CUE claim is 4 pages long.Two Cues but one of them is regarding a whole paragraph from the 2015 decision....which has the wrong ratings, that they took from a prior award letter that I cued before...because the ratings were all wrong..... these people cannot read.

I believe CUE claims should be very short.But in this case, I clearly spelled out their legal errors and the established proof that their statements were wrong.

The DTA 5103 waiver violation will be interesting to see how they deal with that as it led directly to their first legal error under 38 CFR 4.6. All of these CUES were committed by the same person who is getting the CUE

via "Attention to".....he he

I filed my last CUE via IRIS as a complaint so that is why I could not find it here.They fixed that one fast but I think this should get directly to the rater first... and give him a chance to respond to me.

He was the last person I know of who had my 13 pieces of ignored evidence,and  even read the descriptions or letterheads  back to me briefly, when he got the 5103.

 

 

 

[allansc2005]

Berta,

The short CUE summary you suggested that I write was two paragraphs, then the evidence pages probably numbered 10 at most.

The reviewing officer took all but 30 seconds to look at the CUE, and rendered his decision on the spot-APPROVED!

So the moral of the story, as you've said all along, "keep it short, concise..and to the point"

My rule of thumb is to have everything, records, medical opinions, buddy letters....everything ready to present, so that the VA won't have to look for anything.

 

By the way, the reviewing officer said after he turned off the tape recorder "This has to be the best written, best documented CUE I have ever ruled on in my 25 years with the VA"