Veterans Law Judge
Judge A. Dean: BVA decisions and outcomes
From 2020 to 2026, Veterans Law Judge A. Dean signed 1,281 Board decisions covering 1,737 condition issues. The judge granted 25.9% of those issues, denied 32.5% and remanded 39.7%. For the same mix of conditions, the rest of the Board granted 21.8% and remanded 44.3%, so this judge's grant rate is above the Board's and the remand rate is below it.
Decisions
1,281
2020–2026
Issues decided
1,737
One issue per condition per decision
Issues granted
25.9%
Board, same conditions: 21.8%
Issues remanded
39.7%
Board, same conditions: 44.3%
Judges do not choose their cases, and grant rates differ a lot by condition. “Board, same conditions” is what the rest of the Board decided for the same mix of conditions, so the comparison is fair to the judge's docket. This is not a ranking.
Conditions this judge decided most
Each row compares the judge's issues on one condition with the rest of the Board's issues on the same condition. Conditions with fewer than 20 of this judge's issues are left out, because a few decisions can swing the rate.
| Condition | Issues | Granted | Board granted | Remanded | Board remanded |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hearing loss | 140 | 27.1% | 19.5% | 23.6% | 34.6% |
| Sleep apnea syndromes (obstructive central mixed) | 108 | 37.0% | 26.2% | 50.0% | 50.3% |
| Tinnitus | 102 | 56.9% | 39.6% | 14.7% | 22.8% |
| Knee impairment | 101 | 14.9% | 17.3% | 47.5% | 51.1% |
| Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) | 99 | 30.3% | 28.9% | 25.3% | 38.1% |
| Hypertension | 66 | 18.2% | 17.2% | 34.8% | 48.8% |
| Migraine | 54 | 25.9% | 30.2% | 42.6% | 42.2% |
| Degenerative arthritis of the spine (spondylosis) | 44 | 29.5% | 20.6% | 45.5% | 46.1% |
| Intervertebral disc syndrome | 43 | 16.3% | 18.7% | 53.5% | 48.0% |
| Shoulder impairment | 35 | 11.4% | 14.3% | 48.6% | 53.0% |
| Peripheral nerve disorders | 32 | 15.6% | 20.5% | 50.0% | 51.7% |
| Major depressive disorder | 29 | 27.6% | 34.6% | 27.6% | 34.2% |
| Gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) | 22 | 13.6% | 19.3% | 54.5% | 52.9% |
| Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) | 22 | 18.2% | 11.8% | 63.6% | 52.2% |
| Anxiety disorder | 20 | 5.0% | 20.6% | 65.0% | 49.7% |
Judge A. Dean's decisions by year
| Year | Decisions | Granted | Denied | Remanded |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | 34 | 47.1% | 52.9% | 55.9% |
| 2022 | 47 | 25.5% | 31.9% | 61.7% |
| 2023 | 471 | 31.4% | 32.1% | 49.0% |
| 2024 | 525 | 35.4% | 33.9% | 35.4% |
| 2025 | 165 | 40.0% | 49.7% | 30.3% |
| 2026 | 38 | 44.7% | 52.6% | 34.2% |
Why the Board granted or denied issues in Judge A. Dean's decisions
Most common reasons in grants
- Current diagnosis established47
- Service connection established14
- In-service noise exposure conceded13
- Caused by the service-connected disability11
- Continuity of symptomatology since service9
- Credible lay statements regarding tinnitus6
- Inadequate VA examiner opinion4
- VA examiner: less likely than not related to service4
Most common reasons in denials
- VA examiner: less likely than not related to service39
- No current diagnosis33
- Service records negative or silent30
- No in-service complaints, treatment or diagnosis24
- Current diagnosis established20
- Preponderance of the evidence against the claim11
- No new and relevant evidence submitted8
- Persuasive evidence against claim7
Numbers are decisions that gave the reason. Reasons are short phrases extracted by AI from each decision; common wordings of the same reason are grouped. Benefit of the doubt is reported above.
Recent Judge A. Dean decisions
Granted
Resolving all doubt in the appellant's favor.; RVCL, a genetic disease, first manifested during service.; Initial findings during service bloodwork indicated the condition's presence.
Veteran's testimony described frequent, completely prostrating attacks; Headaches impact ability to work as electrician due to depth perception issues; Evidence in approximate balance for 50% rating criteria
Approximate balance of evidence; Benefit of the doubt applied; Secondary causation to Graves' disease or orthopedic disabilities
Denied
No current diagnosis of neck disorder; No evidence of in-service incurrence or aggravation; No nexus to service established
No current diagnosis of neck disability; No evidence of functional impairment; No complaints or treatments in service records
Symptoms do not meet criteria for 70% or 100% rating.; Private clinician attributed severe symptoms to non-service-connected trauma.; VA examiners found impairment consistent with 30% rating.
Research your Judge A. Dean case
Narrow by year, judge, evidence or secondary condition, read the decisions, and export a research memo.
How these numbers are calculated
- Issue rates count each condition the Board decided in a decision once, by the outcome of that issue. A decision can grant one issue and deny another.
- The yearly table counts decisions: a decision with a granted issue and a denied issue appears in both columns, so a row can add up to more than 100%.
- "Board, same conditions" weights the rest of the Board's grant and remand rate for each condition by how many of this judge's issues were on that condition. It does not adjust for evidence, hearing type or representation.
- Judges are identified from the signature on each decision. This page is a statistical summary, not an evaluation of any judge.
- The data comes from CaseScribe's AI extraction of public BVA decisions (2020–2026) and can contain errors. It is updated automatically as new decisions are added.