What is the Deep Issue in the Case? Medical examiners are not required to discuss every piece of favorable evidence or provide reasons or bases. Monzingo v. Shinseki, 26 Vet. App. 97 (2012) The veteran testified that he had pain related to 2 current… Read More

A VA Government shutdown…what a GREAT way to start a Monday morning. Congress decided it was more important to jockey for electioneering leverage than to fund the federal government, so on January 19, 2018, most functions of the Federal Governm… Read More

There are estimated to be over 21 million veterans. Of those, around 4.5 million are considered disabled – they have a medical condition or disability which resulted from their time in service. That is the market of people who may seek out your… Read More

What is the Deep Issue in the Case? Author note: Typically, I work to keep “Deep Issue” summaries below 100 words. I believe this decision is significant, and have worked to keep the Deep Issue as brief as possible while accurately portra… Read More

What is the Deep Issue in the Case? A veteran has a burden to present and support a claim for benefits with facts, and not pure speculation or remote possibility. Fagan v. Shinseki, 573 F.3d 1282 (Fed. Cir. 2009) . A VA C&P Exam report must rest… Read More

This post is Part II of a 5-part series on the VA RAMP (Appeals Reform) system. Here are the topics for each of the 5 parts of the series – as they are published, links will appear to direct you to each part: Part I (Click here to Read Part I):… Read More

What is the Deep Issue in the Case? When establishing a PTSD rating, the Board of Veterans Appeals is required to “engage in a holistic analysis” of a veteran’s mental health symptoms to determine the proper disability percnetage. B… Read More

What is the Deep Issue in the Case? Extra-schedular consideration should be considered “where the schedular evaluations are found to be inadequate.” 38 C.F.R. § 3.321(b)(1) (emphasis added). The herring loss rating criteria are largely b… Read More