Veterans Law Judge
Judge B. Mullins: BVA decisions and outcomes
From 2017 to 2026, Veterans Law Judge B. Mullins signed 8,107 Board decisions covering 16,354 condition issues. The judge granted 18.7% of those issues, denied 28.7% and remanded 50.1%. For the same mix of conditions, the rest of the Board granted 19.8% and remanded 47.2%, so this judge's grant rate is close to the Board's and the remand rate is above it.
Decisions
8,107
2017–2026
Issues decided
16,354
One issue per condition per decision
Issues granted
18.7%
Board, same conditions: 19.8%
Issues remanded
50.1%
Board, same conditions: 47.2%
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Knee impairment | 1,252 | 16.2% | 17.3% | 53.1% | 51.1% |
| Hearing loss | 850 | 19.8% | 19.5% | 35.9% | 34.6% |
| Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) | 733 | 31.0% | 28.9% | 40.2% | 38.1% |
| Tinnitus | 572 | 37.9% | 39.6% | 22.6% | 22.8% |
| Degenerative arthritis of the spine (spondylosis) | 542 | 19.2% | 20.7% | 49.1% | 46.0% |
| Sleep apnea syndromes (obstructive central mixed) | 531 | 28.1% | 26.2% | 48.0% | 50.4% |
| Hypertension | 457 | 18.8% | 17.1% | 51.6% | 48.7% |
| Intervertebral disc syndrome | 389 | 16.7% | 18.7% | 47.3% | 48.0% |
| Shoulder impairment | 349 | 14.9% | 14.3% | 55.3% | 53.0% |
| Migraine | 345 | 30.7% | 30.1% | 40.6% | 42.2% |
| Ankle impairment | 326 | 23.0% | 16.8% | 46.0% | 50.5% |
| Peripheral nerve disorders | 320 | 20.0% | 20.5% | 47.2% | 51.7% |
| Hip impairment | 294 | 11.6% | 14.4% | 59.9% | 53.8% |
| Diabetes mellitus | 277 | 19.1% | 20.0% | 44.0% | 40.0% |
| Cervical spine limitation of motion | 227 | 16.7% | 13.1% | 57.7% | 58.4% |
Judge B. Mullins's decisions by year
| Year | Decisions | Granted | Denied | Remanded |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2017 | 496 | 18.5% | 44.0% | 55.6% |
| 2018 | 849 | 19.7% | 40.5% | 60.7% |
| 2019 | 884 | 29.2% | 38.5% | 58.7% |
| 2020 | 892 | 27.8% | 37.8% | 49.7% |
| 2021 | 909 | 33.0% | 30.7% | 55.0% |
| 2022 | 910 | 33.5% | 30.0% | 55.3% |
| 2023 | 855 | 42.2% | 34.0% | 50.8% |
| 2024 | 963 | 40.5% | 35.7% | 43.3% |
| 2025 | 1,017 | 40.2% | 41.6% | 40.9% |
| 2026 | 332 | 45.5% | 38.9% | 34.0% |
Why the Board granted or denied issues in Judge B. Mullins's decisions
Most common reasons in grants
- Current diagnosis established315
- Service connection established89
- In-service noise exposure conceded77
- Caused by the service-connected disability64
- Continuity of symptomatology since service29
- Criteria for service connection met17
- Aggravated by the service-connected disability16
- VA examiner: less likely than not related to service16
Most common reasons in denials
- Preponderance of the evidence against the claim328
- VA examiner: less likely than not related to service283
- Service records negative or silent278
- No current diagnosis200
- No in-service complaints, treatment or diagnosis192
- Current diagnosis established63
- Already at the maximum schedular rating36
- Continuity of symptomatology since service24
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 B. Mullins decisions
Granted
Current disability with onset in service; Related to in-service noise exposure; Hazardous noise exposure conceded due to MOS; Benefit of the doubt resolved in veteran's favor
Presumption of service connection for ALS under 38 C.F.R. § 3.312; No affirmative evidence against service connection; Veteran had 90+ days of active service; Buddy statements indicated ALS diagnosis and progression; Benefit of the doubt resolved in favor of the Veteran
Symptoms align with 70% rating criteria; Lay statements corroborate worsening symptoms; Benefit of doubt resolved in Veteran's favor
Denied
No current diagnosis of frostbite residuals; Service treatment records silent for frostbite complaints; VA examinations found no current disability; Lay testimony not competent for diagnosis
No current medical evidence of disability for left ear hearing loss.; Service treatment records negative for complaints or diagnosis.; Post-service VA audiological exam did not meet disability criteria.; Failed to report for scheduled VA examination without good cause.
VA audiometric examination showed mild hearing loss.; Results did not meet criteria for compensable evaluation.; Lay evidence did not demonstrate worse impairment.
Research your Judge B. Mullins 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 (2017–2026) and can contain errors. It is updated automatically as new decisions are added.