Win Your VA Claim Appeal With New Evidence

If you lost your veterans disability claim at the Regional Office level, there is a good chance you were missing a key piece of evidence that was necessary for VA to grant your claim. After you have gone through the Notice of Disagreement process at the Regional Office, you then can file a Form 9 substantive appeal to take your appeal to the Board of Veterans’ Appeals (BVA).

What I see far too often are veterans not taking advantage of the opportunity they have at that point to submit additional new evidence that will strengthen their claim.  If you know the law and use it to your advantage, you can make it more likely that you will win your VA claim appeal for disability compensation at the Board of Veterans’ Appeals.

evidence for VA claim appeal
Missing evidence can be key.

Use the VA’s Process to Your Advantage

I am not sure why more veterans don’t take advantage of this opportunity to add helpful evidence.  I think it is because many veterans don’t realize that VA’s processes are different in many ways than other court systems are with regard to new evidence on appeals.

In most types of legal actions, if you lose your case and appeal you cannot submit new evidence during the course of that appeal. The appeals court is only reviewing the case to see if the lower court judge got it right based on the evidence presented.  Even if you have a new witness or find out the other side was lying, you cannot bring that up on appeal because “the record is closed.”  That is another way of saying that the time for evidence has ended.

The good news is that the VA claim appeal process works totally differently.  When you appeal to the Board of Veterans’ Appeals, you can, and probably should, gather and submit new evidence that supports your claim.

Use New Evidence

The important thing to keep in mind here is that VA has some very powerful rules that can be used to your advantage in the appeals process. You need to recognize these and take advantage when possible.

Too many veterans get caught in the trap of thinking that the VA denied their claim simply because they do not like them or that they are overworked. While those things may be true, it is your job, or that of you and your representative/attorney:

  • to understand what evidence is needed,
  • to recognize you have the opportunity to submit that evidence,
  • and to provide it in time so that it can be considered with your appeal.

Hopefully, that will result in a grant of your claim. Even if the BVA does not grant the claim outright, they may at least remand it to the Regional Office for further development of one or more issues now that there is at least a way the claim may eventually be granted.

Get Help with Identifying Critical Evidence for Your VA Claim Appeal

If your claim is headed to the BVA at this point, it might be a good idea to consult with an attorney who is experienced in VA appeals to help you through that process. That attorney can help you determine what evidence was missing when the claim was denied.  The attorney can also help to gather that evidence, whether it is in the form of a medical opinion, a buddy statement, medical records, or service records.

We had a BVA hearing recently where we were able to do just that.  Our client had been denied service connection for PTSD because he had no evidence of a PTSD diagnosis.  We were able to get a medical opinion diagnosing him with PTSD and relating it to his military service.  Without this new evidence on appeal, his PTSD claim would likely have been denied.

There are strict deadlines on submitting new evidence in a VA claim appeal, but these rules can be used to your advantage if known and acted upon. If you would like to consult with one of our VA accredited attorneys, you can reach out to us on this website or give us a call for a free consultation. We will be glad to see what we can do to help you with your claim.

Travis Studdard is an attorney who focuses on representing veterans in VA disability compensation claims.  He regularly writes about issues that are important to veterans and their families.

You can subscribe to his Veterans Disability channel on YouTube.

Caring, courteous and get the job done in a professional and timely manner. My journey with Perkins Studdard LLC was most successful!linda barnes
Him and his office staff, did excellent work. They treat you like you’re their only client. Also they gave me 100% customer service. I’m 100% satisfied. Thanks for everything.Earl butler
This law firm is awesome! They went way above the call of duty to help me with my claim. I cannot say enough good things about them!Zane El Toro
Jason and his staff were very professional and helped me tremendously when I was injured at work. Walked me through the process and answered all questions I had.Owen Hall
My experience with the team at Perkins Studdard LLC was nothing short of outstanding.Jason Perkins handled my case with the upmost professionalism. It has been emotionally and physically exhausting for me, but Jason Perkins and his team helped me thru it. Their service was exceptional and the Paralegal Staff was always courteous and prompt in their response time which made it more bearable.I am truly grateful for their patient and caring spirit and I highly recommend Perkins Studdard LLC .........Thanks so much, CherylCheryl Brown
We would highly recommend Perkins Studdard to everyone, they are very professional, personable and efficient. They have stood by our side during out VA disability case until we got our claim rewarded at 100%, more than we ever dreamed of. Travis is very experienced attorney and has an awesome demeanor with getting your case settled. Jessica his assistant is the smartest, sweetest asset to the firm. She's highly experienced in VA benefits, being a veteran herself. They always took our calls, questions and got us the answers we needed. Again, highly recommend the law firm of Perkins Studdard!!Janene Schoonover
Mr Perkins has helped me on two workers comp cases. Twenty years apart. Jason and his staff have taken care of everything I needed. They are very professional and I would highly recommend them.Chris Chapman
I highly recommend Perkins Studdard law office to any one looking for a Worker's Compensation attorney. The knowledge and professionalism that the entire staff gives to you is amazing. Jason is down to earth and makes your experience feel so much better, he takes alot of the worry off of your shoulders. Definitely would hire this firm again if needed!!Lori Clark
I had an outstanding experience with Perkins Studdard LLC for my workers’ compensation case. Jason Perkins and his team were incredibly knowledgeable, responsive, and compassionate throughout the entire process. They took the time to explain every step, answered all my questions promptly, and ensured I understood my rights. Their dedication led to a successful outcome, and I felt supported the entire way through. I highly recommend Perkins Studdard LLC to anyone in need of a skilled and caring workers’ compensation attorney.Breezie I B
Travis Studdard is an outstanding attorney. I had given up on my VA claim over ten years go. Travis revived my claim and was able to get me secondary service connection for sleep apnea (secondary to residuals of septoplasty). I am thrilled at the results. Travis was able to expertly navigate the VA system to reach a positive result. I very, very highly recommend Perkins Studdard.Ilya Poluektov

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