Veterans Law Judge
Judge Cynthia M. Bruce: BVA decisions and outcomes
From 2017 to 2026, Veterans Law Judge Cynthia M. Bruce signed 7,415 Board decisions covering 13,872 condition issues. The judge granted 20.3% of those issues, denied 31.3% and remanded 45.8%. For the same mix of conditions, the rest of the Board granted 20.0% and remanded 46.8%, so this judge's grant rate is close to the Board's and the remand rate is close to it.
Decisions
7,415
2017–2026
Issues decided
13,872
One issue per condition per decision
Issues granted
20.3%
Board, same conditions: 20.0%
Issues remanded
45.8%
Board, same conditions: 46.8%
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 | 1,187 | 17.0% | 17.3% | 47.3% | 51.1% |
| Hearing loss | 714 | 24.6% | 19.4% | 34.2% | 34.6% |
| Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) | 671 | 30.3% | 28.9% | 34.1% | 38.1% |
| Tinnitus | 539 | 45.6% | 39.5% | 16.1% | 22.8% |
| Degenerative arthritis of the spine (spondylosis) | 460 | 18.5% | 20.7% | 42.4% | 46.1% |
| Sleep apnea syndromes (obstructive central mixed) | 437 | 29.1% | 26.2% | 47.1% | 50.4% |
| Hypertension | 436 | 17.4% | 17.2% | 50.9% | 48.7% |
| Intervertebral disc syndrome | 340 | 18.2% | 18.7% | 44.7% | 48.1% |
| Shoulder impairment | 332 | 15.7% | 14.3% | 50.9% | 53.1% |
| Peripheral nerve disorders | 294 | 29.3% | 20.5% | 49.7% | 51.7% |
| Migraine | 276 | 34.1% | 30.1% | 37.3% | 42.2% |
| Hip impairment | 257 | 14.0% | 14.3% | 54.9% | 53.8% |
| Ankle impairment | 257 | 17.1% | 16.9% | 45.9% | 50.5% |
| Diabetes mellitus | 256 | 17.6% | 20.0% | 38.3% | 40.1% |
| Cervical spine limitation of motion | 177 | 13.6% | 13.2% | 52.0% | 58.4% |
Judge Cynthia M. Bruce's decisions by year
| Year | Decisions | Granted | Denied | Remanded |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2017 | 535 | 27.1% | 45.4% | 48.8% |
| 2018 | 236 | 29.7% | 38.6% | 55.5% |
| 2019 | 851 | 32.8% | 45.1% | 51.5% |
| 2020 | 913 | 32.1% | 44.0% | 51.9% |
| 2021 | 860 | 32.1% | 43.1% | 52.6% |
| 2022 | 784 | 37.9% | 34.1% | 53.4% |
| 2023 | 843 | 35.8% | 37.6% | 45.4% |
| 2024 | 906 | 32.7% | 35.4% | 41.8% |
| 2025 | 1,040 | 36.0% | 35.3% | 40.3% |
| 2026 | 447 | 40.7% | 34.2% | 43.4% |
Why the Board granted or denied issues in Judge Cynthia M. Bruce's decisions
Most common reasons in grants
- Current diagnosis established279
- Service connection established64
- In-service noise exposure conceded62
- Continuity of symptomatology since service51
- Caused by the service-connected disability46
- Criteria for service connection met14
- VA examiner: less likely than not related to service14
- Aggravated by the service-connected disability12
Most common reasons in denials
- Preponderance of the evidence against the claim290
- No current diagnosis186
- Service records negative or silent171
- VA examiner: less likely than not related to service154
- Current diagnosis established114
- No in-service complaints, treatment or diagnosis106
- Already at the maximum schedular rating43
- No continuity of symptomatology28
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 Cynthia M. Bruce decisions
Granted
Veteran served in Vietnam during the Vietnam Era.; VA conceded herbicide exposure based on Vietnam service.; Private medical opinions linked glioblastoma to herbicide exposure.; VA opinion lacked rationale and was given little weight.
Evidence in approximate balance; Benefit of the doubt afforded; Grant of earlier effective date
Favorable finding of COPD diagnosis; Presumptive service connection under PACT Act for Persian Gulf service; Minimal asbestos exposure conceded based on MOS; Adequate private medical opinion supporting direct service connection
Denied
Did not meet SMC housebound criteria prior to July 14, 2020; Insufficient evidence of permanent housebound status
September 2014 rating decision became final as no NOD was filed and no new/material evidence was received.; CUE requires undebatable error that manifestly changed the outcome, not a disagreement on evidence weighing.; Prior VA policy assigned a 10 percent rating for painful motion irrespective of the diagnostic code.; Subsequent judicial decisions (Sowers v. McDonald) changed interpretation but cannot form basis for CUE in final decisions.
Objective findings showed normal or mildly limited range of motion.; No incapacitating episodes or ankylosis noted.; Veteran's subjective complaints outweighed by objective evidence.
Research your Judge Cynthia M. Bruce 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.