Appeals to BVA Docket Date

[CINÁED]

I have appeals at the BVA in the AMA and I see on the BVA web site Appeals Metrics that the Current Legacy Docket Date is up to Sept 2019. Does this mean they are reviewing appeals in the legacy lane up to this date and if so how do we know what the date is they are reviewing appeals in the AMA.

[Dustoff1970]

In my answer to your question, I filed an OSA Sleep Apnea claim in December 2017 and then appealed the VARO denial to the BVA in December 2019 along with new evidence and the BVA granted my OSA claim/appeal at 50% due to PTSD in January of 2022 along with SMC-S rating backdated about 4 years.

Edited July 14, 2022 by Dustoff 11

[Whodat]

To add to it, Dustoff fell up under the Legacy appeal process. The legacy system was supposed to be done with by 2022. Due to covid, the deadline will not be met. From my understanding, legacy appeals have priority. 

[pacmanx1]

3 hours ago, CINÁED said:

I have appeals at the BVA in the AMA and I see on the BVA web site Appeals Metrics that the Current Legacy Docket Date is up to Sept 2019. Does this mean they are reviewing appeals in the legacy lane up to this date and if so how do we know what the date is they are reviewing appeals in the AMA.

Very good question and I am not sure if anyone could answer it correctly. Even though the BVA is working on completing all the legacy claims they are supposed to be doing AMA claims also.  If you go to the BVA web site, they still say the same thing as for the time frame. Not sure how they are doing this. It does not give any information of where they are in processing the AMA claims.

Board Appeals | Veterans Affairs (va.gov)

Option 1: Request a direct review

If you choose the direct review option, a Veterans Law Judge will review your appeal based on evidence already submitted. You can’t submit evidence, and you can’t have a hearing.

Note: The Direct Review option will take about one year for the Board to complete.

Option 2: Submit more evidence

If you choose the evidence submission option, you can submit more evidence for a Veterans Law Judge to review. You must submit this evidence within 90 days of the date we receive your request for a Board Appeal. 

Note: The evidence submission option will take more than one year for the Board to complete.

Option 3: Request a hearing

If you request a hearing with a Veterans Law Judge, you can choose to add new and relevant evidence, either at the hearing or within 90 days after the hearing. Adding evidence is optional. Your hearing will be transcribed and added to your appeal file.

You can choose from 3 different ways to speak with the Veterans Law Judge:

• Virtual hearing from your home
• Videoconference hearing at a VA location near you
• In-person hearing at the Board in Washington, D.C.

Note: The hearing request option will take more than one year for the Board to complete.

********Last updated: June 13, 2022********

[broncovet]

Everyone wants to know "how long will my claim (appeal) take?"

VA is very evasive with that answer.  

"It depends (what pacman said) on whether or not you want a hearing, and the type of hearing (in person, video, etc), when you submitted the claim, the VA's workload, whether or not you are eligible for an advance on the docket etc."  And, how many people are ahead of you, and how many people in the future will get an advance on the docket leapfrogging ahead of you.

Mostly we dont know those things and VA doesnt either.  But you are right, you can check the numbers and see what docket numbers (docket numbers show the year) the BVA is on now to get an idea.  

Of course, there are many, many glitches along the way.  The VARO no longer "certifies" the appeal for the board, which has pros and cons.  It takes less time, but the board may not have all the evidence.  

Veterans advocates normally suggest a Veteran get a hobby, rather than "checking ebenefits/VA.gov" 8 times a day.  There is a long backlog and we have to wait our turn.  A "watched pot never boils".  

[McRay]

On 7/13/2022 at 12:55 PM, Dustoff 11 said:

In my answer to your question, I filed an OSA Sleep Apnea claim in December 2017 and then appealed the VARO denial to the BVA in December 2019 along with new evidence and the BVA granted my OSA claim/appeal at 50% due to PTSD in January of 2022 along with SMC-S rating backdated about 4 years.

It's strange how the appeals docket date works. I appealed my granted claim in Nov of 2018 and got on the docket in Sept of 2019 When I checked  this am there are still 50,420 appeals ahead of me. On the va.gov tracker it says they are working on claims from June of 2018. If you check BVA Metrics it says current legacy docket date is Sept of 2019.

CCK is suing the VA, partially because of backlog, needless complexity in process and prioritizing legacy claims.

[pacmanx1]

2 hours ago, McRay said:

CCK is suing the VA, partially because of backlog, needless complexity in process and prioritizing legacy claims.

The board has their backlog but with congress changing presumptive and adding new disabilities to the list of disabilities causes the board to review older claims and give them priority for older veterans. I am not trying to speak for the board, I know they have their problems and I do not think the backlog should be this bad but what can you really do when the VA is not really held accountable for anything. It is horrible and ashamed. Most people who are found incompetent in their position are normally fired and not just relocated to a new and other positions.