Veterans Law Judge
Judge Barbara B. Copeland: BVA decisions and outcomes
From 2017 to 2019, Veterans Law Judge Barbara B. Copeland signed 1,814 Board decisions covering 3,773 condition issues. The judge granted 9.0% of those issues, denied 33.7% and remanded 52.3%. For the same mix of conditions, the rest of the Board granted 19.3% and remanded 48.0%, so this judge's grant rate is below the Board's and the remand rate is above it.
Decisions
1,814
2017–2019
Issues decided
3,773
One issue per condition per decision
Issues granted
9.0%
Board, same conditions: 19.3%
Issues remanded
52.3%
Board, same conditions: 48.0%
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 | 378 | 5.3% | 17.3% | 54.8% | 51.1% |
| Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) | 232 | 13.4% | 28.9% | 53.4% | 38.1% |
| Degenerative arthritis of the spine (spondylosis) | 186 | 10.8% | 20.7% | 40.3% | 46.1% |
| Hearing loss | 176 | 10.8% | 19.5% | 44.3% | 34.6% |
| Tinnitus | 119 | 16.8% | 39.6% | 38.7% | 22.7% |
| Intervertebral disc syndrome | 115 | 6.1% | 18.7% | 47.0% | 48.0% |
| Hypertension | 112 | 4.5% | 17.2% | 50.0% | 48.7% |
| Shoulder impairment | 79 | 2.5% | 14.3% | 51.9% | 53.0% |
| Sleep apnea syndromes (obstructive central mixed) | 73 | 16.4% | 26.2% | 50.7% | 50.3% |
| Peripheral nerve disorders | 71 | 11.3% | 20.6% | 53.5% | 51.7% |
| Migraine | 70 | 11.4% | 30.2% | 61.4% | 42.1% |
| Major depressive disorder | 63 | 23.8% | 34.6% | 39.7% | 34.2% |
| Diabetes mellitus | 59 | 18.6% | 20.0% | 37.3% | 40.1% |
| Ankle impairment | 58 | 10.3% | 16.9% | 53.4% | 50.4% |
| Hip impairment | 48 | 2.1% | 14.4% | 54.2% | 53.8% |
Judge Barbara B. Copeland's decisions by year
| Year | Decisions | Granted | Denied | Remanded |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2017 | 623 | 14.8% | 47.8% | 57.0% |
| 2018 | 824 | 20.4% | 39.0% | 65.0% |
| 2019 | 367 | 21.8% | 40.6% | 63.5% |
Why the Board granted or denied issues in Judge Barbara B. Copeland's decisions
Most common reasons in grants
- Current diagnosis established20
- In-service noise exposure conceded8
- Caused by the service-connected disability4
- Criteria for service connection met4
- Continuity of symptomatology since service3
- VA examiner: less likely than not related to service3
- Service connection established2
- New and material evidence (private physician opinion) received to reopen claim2
Most common reasons in denials
- VA examiner: less likely than not related to service64
- Preponderance of the evidence against the claim54
- No in-service complaints, treatment or diagnosis38
- No current diagnosis35
- Current diagnosis established34
- Service records negative or silent33
- Already at the maximum schedular rating12
- No continuity of symptomatology7
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 Barbara B. Copeland decisions
Granted
Staged ratings applied for different periods.; Symptoms of depression, anxiety, sleep disturbance, memory loss, and social/occupational impairment considered.; 50% rating prior to Nov 12, 2015, based on reduced reliability/productivity.; 70% rating from May 10, 2016, based on deficiencies in most areas.
February 2005 rating decision is final.; No new and material evidence received since February 2005.; Additional evidence was not material to substantiate the claim.
Benefit of the doubt afforded to veteran; Symptoms approximated 70% criteria; Preponderance of evidence against 100% rating
Denied
Preponderance of evidence against compensable rating; Audiometric results did not meet criteria for compensable rating; Assigned 0 percent rating per Table VII of DC 6100
Criteria for service connection not met.; Weight of evidence preponderates against service connection.; No evidence of service onset or current disability related to service.
Evidence did not demonstrate total occupational and social impairment; Veteran maintained good family relationships; No VA examiner opined total impairment prior to Dec 14, 2018
Research your Judge Barbara B. Copeland 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 (2017–2019) and can contain errors. It is updated automatically as new decisions are added.