Veterans Law Judge
Judge Bethany L. Buck: BVA decisions and outcomes
From 2017 to 2026, Veterans Law Judge Bethany L. Buck signed 7,329 Board decisions covering 14,237 condition issues. The judge granted 20.9% of those issues, denied 33.9% and remanded 42.7%. For the same mix of conditions, the rest of the Board granted 20.1% and remanded 46.4%, so this judge's grant rate is close to the Board's and the remand rate is below it.
Decisions
7,329
2017–2026
Issues decided
14,237
One issue per condition per decision
Issues granted
20.9%
Board, same conditions: 20.1%
Issues remanded
42.7%
Board, same conditions: 46.4%
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 | 1,181 | 16.9% | 17.3% | 45.5% | 51.2% |
| Hearing loss | 753 | 18.2% | 19.5% | 32.7% | 34.6% |
| Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) | 675 | 34.4% | 28.8% | 29.2% | 38.2% |
| Degenerative arthritis of the spine (spondylosis) | 519 | 22.2% | 20.6% | 41.4% | 46.1% |
| Tinnitus | 491 | 49.9% | 39.5% | 14.9% | 22.8% |
| Sleep apnea syndromes (obstructive central mixed) | 461 | 26.0% | 26.2% | 48.8% | 50.3% |
| Hypertension | 405 | 16.8% | 17.2% | 46.2% | 48.8% |
| Intervertebral disc syndrome | 394 | 18.8% | 18.7% | 41.4% | 48.1% |
| Migraine | 345 | 32.5% | 30.1% | 35.7% | 42.2% |
| Shoulder impairment | 331 | 16.0% | 14.3% | 52.0% | 53.0% |
| Hip impairment | 277 | 19.9% | 14.3% | 50.9% | 53.8% |
| Ankle impairment | 266 | 15.4% | 16.9% | 43.2% | 50.5% |
| Diabetes mellitus | 259 | 23.6% | 19.9% | 36.3% | 40.1% |
| Peripheral nerve disorders | 220 | 15.9% | 20.6% | 46.4% | 51.7% |
| Major depressive disorder | 200 | 37.5% | 34.6% | 28.5% | 34.2% |
Judge Bethany L. Buck's decisions by year
| Year | Decisions | Granted | Denied | Remanded |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2017 | 188 | 21.8% | 47.3% | 46.3% |
| 2018 | 267 | 32.2% | 49.4% | 46.1% |
| 2019 | 935 | 36.7% | 43.4% | 55.6% |
| 2020 | 1,028 | 33.0% | 48.4% | 46.8% |
| 2021 | 921 | 33.6% | 45.2% | 44.3% |
| 2022 | 736 | 40.8% | 40.5% | 45.0% |
| 2023 | 879 | 32.9% | 44.3% | 49.1% |
| 2024 | 1,017 | 31.7% | 41.0% | 39.2% |
| 2025 | 1,003 | 35.3% | 40.3% | 40.5% |
| 2026 | 355 | 42.3% | 37.2% | 36.6% |
Why the Board granted or denied issues in Judge Bethany L. Buck's decisions
Most common reasons in grants
- Current diagnosis established324
- Continuity of symptomatology since service89
- Service connection established78
- Caused by the service-connected disability50
- In-service noise exposure conceded38
- Criteria for service connection met17
- Service records negative or silent16
- Aggravated by the service-connected disability16
Most common reasons in denials
- No current diagnosis250
- Preponderance of the evidence against the claim210
- VA examiner: less likely than not related to service161
- No in-service complaints, treatment or diagnosis156
- Service records negative or silent119
- Current diagnosis established99
- No continuity of symptomatology61
- Already at the maximum schedular rating56
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 Bethany L. Buck decisions
Granted
Marriage certificate submitted; Sufficient documentation provided
In-service injury alleged (assault with metal rod); Private medical records show old injury, instability, and pain; Fellow veteran corroborates in-service assault; Pain alone can constitute functional impairment/disability; VA examiner opinion found inadequate (conflated chronicity of care with continuity of symptoms)
VA exam internally inconsistent regarding severity of flare-ups; VA examiner applied wrong standard regarding functional ability; Veteran's lay testimony found most probative regarding severity; Benefit of the doubt applied in Veteran's favor
Denied
No current diagnosis of shin splints or stress fractures; Evidence persuasively against claim; VA examination found no current disability
October 2017 VA exam found marked deformity but improvement with orthotics.; July 2020 VA exam showed worsening symptoms but lacked evidence of severe Achilles tendon issues.; Veteran's lay testimony regarding worsening symptoms was credible but not specific enough to meet 50% criteria.
December 2024 VA audiology exam thresholds did not meet regulatory definition; August 2021 private audiogram also did not meet criteria; No current diagnosis of hearing loss disability; Hearing loss must reach prescribed level of severity per 38 C.F.R. § 3.385
Research your Judge Bethany L. Buck 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.