Veterans Law Judge
Judge James A. Defrank: BVA decisions and outcomes
From 2020 to 2025, Veterans Law Judge James A. Defrank signed 239 Board decisions covering 543 condition issues. The judge granted 21.9% of those issues, denied 30.6% and remanded 46.6%. For the same mix of conditions, the rest of the Board granted 20.5% and remanded 45.2%, so this judge's grant rate is close to the Board's and the remand rate is close to it.
Decisions
239
2020–2025
Issues decided
543
One issue per condition per decision
Issues granted
21.9%
Board, same conditions: 20.5%
Issues remanded
46.6%
Board, same conditions: 45.2%
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 | 44 | 25.0% | 17.3% | 52.3% | 51.1% |
| Hearing loss | 32 | 18.8% | 19.5% | 40.6% | 34.6% |
| Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) | 32 | 28.1% | 28.9% | 40.6% | 38.1% |
| Degenerative arthritis of the spine (spondylosis) | 23 | 13.0% | 20.7% | 47.8% | 46.1% |
Judge James A. Defrank's decisions by year
| Year | Decisions | Granted | Denied | Remanded |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | 112 | 39.3% | 43.8% | 58.9% |
| 2021 | 101 | 19.8% | 47.5% | 56.4% |
Why the Board granted or denied issues in Judge James A. Defrank's decisions
Most common reasons in grants
- Current diagnosis established7
- Service records negative or silent2
- Service connection established2
- VA examiner: less likely than not related to service2
- Caused by the service-connected disability2
Most common reasons in denials
- Preponderance of the evidence against the claim19
- Service records negative or silent10
- VA examiner: less likely than not related to service10
- No in-service complaints, treatment or diagnosis7
- No current diagnosis5
- No continuity of symptomatology4
- Already at the maximum schedular rating4
- Current diagnosis established3
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 James A. Defrank decisions
Granted
Severe pain, instability, and functional loss; Inability to sit/stand/walk for prolonged periods; Symptoms akin to loss of use
December 2024 VA examination noted onset in 1985; Veteran's testimony regarding onset during service is credible; Evidence weighs persuasively in favor of in-service onset
Veteran reported constant dull aching pain and sharp stabbing pain with prolonged weight-bearing, standing, and walking.; VA examinations noted decreased range of motion, pain on motion, weakness, and fatigability causing functional loss.; Board found symptoms most nearly approximated marked limitation of motion, warranting 20% rating.
Denied
Forward flexion less than 30 degrees; No unfavorable ankylosis; Symptoms contemplated by 40 percent rating
Veteran reported hearing difficulties and the Board found his reports credible.; Audiometric testing results did not meet VA regulatory thresholds for hearing loss.; Lay testimony regarding hearing loss is not competent to establish the diagnosis.
No in-service complaints or treatment for lumbar spine injury.; Veteran denied recurrent back pain in service.; VA examiner opined less likely than not related to service.; Alternative factors cited: post-service occupation, aging, obesity.
Research your Judge James A. Defrank 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 (2020–2025) and can contain errors. It is updated automatically as new decisions are added.