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After 9 Years, BVA Finally (Mostly) Granted, Drop Remand Issues?

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acesup

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I'm 70% SC (50% for depression, 40% lumbar spine, 10% + 10% lower radiculopathies).    I put in for several secondary and/or aggravation issues which VARO denied way back in 2009, went through DRO review in 2011, then filed Form 9.  

Checked vets. gov yesterday, got this information

Current Status

The Board made a decision on your appeal

The Board of Veterans’ Appeals sent you a decision on your appeal. Here’s an overview of the decision:

Granted

The judge granted the following issues:

  • Service connection, sleep apnea
  • Service connection, lung disease
  • Service connection, peripheral nerve paralysis
  • Service connection, central nervous system disease
  • 100% rating for individual unemployability
  • Service connection, lumbosacral or cervical strain
  • Increased rating, special monthly compensation
  • New and material evidence to reopen claim for service connection, migraines
  • New and material evidence to reopen claim for service connection, lumbosacral or cervical strain

If this decision changes your disability rating or your eligibility for VA benefits, you should see this change made in 1 to 2 months.

 

Two issues were remanded:  SC for migraines and sciatic nerve damage.

Now, I'm considering withdrawal of those two items.  My thoughts are that SC will make absolutely no difference to me, so why waste the VA's time on a remand when they could be working on another veteran's claim?  Can there possibly be any negative consequences to withdrawing them?  It's not like I'm going to die of either condition.

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You should "Always" listen to your Attorney's council. I think you forgot to mention the "VA Lawyer," Representation. 

Just for discussion purposes, what prompted you to seek outside non-Lawyer opinions regarding moving forward with BVA Remands? 

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I am of the opinion that your experience with your lawyer should be a two way street.  My lawyer wanted to quit after I got IU.  He said I was wasting time that other vets needed.  Now I am at 100% P&T with neuropathy that he did not want to pursue.

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When I first filed for OSA, Sciatica, TDIU and back in 2007, I had already been rated 50% since 1974 ( 40% for SC  lumbar spine and 10% for residuals of Hepatitis).  I was living in a remote location where there was no VSO.  Heck, there wasn't even an actual town within 30 minutes.  In 2009 I resubmitted those conditions (they'd been lost in "Shreddergate") along with some others, (Depression, OSA, DVT with PEs, SC for neck disability and related nerve damage) but this time I was living in Texarkana.  I had called a local VSO, but didn't hear back from him.  I called the DAV, of which I've been a Life Member since 1974, and talked to some lady VSO in Dallas.  She was argumentative, and gave me the distinct impression I was wasting her time.  I heard from several vets in the area that I'd be better off to file on my own, so I did.

After denial in 2011, I went to talk with a county VSO.  He seemed quite uninterested and completely uninspiring, and told me basically to surrender.  

I then found, on the Internet, a "NOVA" attorney about an hour west of here.  I called her, and within a few minutes, I knew she would fight for me.  She was smart, caring, and very aggressive.  

We filed NOD for a DRO Review for everything.  In 2014, DRO granted the Depression.  

Just before the 2014 DRO grant, I got a letter from the attorney.  She informed me she was resigning as representative from ALL of her VA claims, saying that she could no longer deal with the "den of vipers" at VA.  (I think she may have even completely quit practicing law, which is too bad, she's a great person with a big heart.)  

She recommended another NOVA lawyer in the next town over.  I called and talked to her, and felt she'd be a good choice.  I think I made a good decision.  We then filed Form 9 for appeal to BVA.

In truth, she didn't have to do much.  I had gathered and submitted a lot of good evidence and IMO/nexus letters right from the start, and was quite surprised that my claims had been denied.  Evidently, the BVA VLJ had a similar reaction.  

For example, in the reasons for the decisions (most granted, two remanded) he says in one place "the only competent opinion of record substantiates the claim...  "There's no competent evidence to the contrary...".  Several times on various conditions, he says of the C&P examiners' opinions (from 3 C&P exams) that their "opinions are inadequate" and he assigns "these negative opinons no probative value".  (I added highlighting/italics).

Still, at the end of the day, I'm glad to have had the attorney, and I think that if more had been needed from her, she would have risen to the task.  And, for all I know, maybe she did things behind the scenes that I'm not even aware of.  I don't mind that she'll get 20% of the retro award.  I'd rather pay that than have a lousy "free" VSO that didn't care about me or my claim, or would have kept advising me to drop the claims/appeals.

 

Edited by acesup
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Gastone, I didn't understand your question at first, but now that I've re-read it...

After 9 (or actually, 11) years of fighting the VA, I'm tired of it even taking up any of my time or energy.  I feel like I just won the war, but these remanded issues, at first blush, seem like going back to re-fight a couple of battles that realistically might make no difference to me one way or the other.  

The remanded issues (SC for migraines and sciatica) will have no financial impact to me, no matter what the outcome.  Neither is likely to become even a contributing cause of death, so they wouldn't help my wife if I passed away.

If the attorney thinks it is wise to pursue them, I probably will do just that.  But. like vetsquest says above, my relationship with the attorney is a two-way street.  I'll always consider her opinion and my own opinion before I decide anything for certain.

But, I like to look at situations from every angle.  If other vets with related experiences have any insight on whether or not there is anything to be gained or lost, I'd definitely welcome the input and consider that information in my thought process.

Everyone has opinions on the best way to cross a minefield.  To me, the trick is to not run straight across, or to blindly follow the first trail I find, but to carefully consider all possible paths.  But if someone will give me a pair of binoculars and I can see footprints that go all the way to the other side, that will most likely become my preferred path.  So it is with this hadit.com site and the advice of other veterans.

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