Veterans Law Judge
Judge Luke Pelican: BVA decisions and outcomes
From 2023 to 2026, Veterans Law Judge Luke Pelican signed 661 Board decisions covering 1,021 condition issues. The judge granted 22.1% of those issues, denied 33.0% and remanded 43.0%. For the same mix of conditions, the rest of the Board granted 21.6% and remanded 44.7%, so this judge's grant rate is close to the Board's and the remand rate is close to it.
Decisions
661
2023–2026
Issues decided
1,021
One issue per condition per decision
Issues granted
22.1%
Board, same conditions: 21.6%
Issues remanded
43.0%
Board, same conditions: 44.7%
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 | 77 | 16.9% | 17.3% | 50.6% | 51.1% |
| Hearing loss | 73 | 11.0% | 19.5% | 26.0% | 34.6% |
| Tinnitus | 57 | 24.6% | 39.6% | 33.3% | 22.7% |
| Sleep apnea syndromes (obstructive central mixed) | 50 | 28.0% | 26.2% | 58.0% | 50.3% |
| Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) | 48 | 37.5% | 28.9% | 27.1% | 38.1% |
| Hypertension | 42 | 35.7% | 17.1% | 16.7% | 48.8% |
| Degenerative arthritis of the spine (spondylosis) | 36 | 19.4% | 20.7% | 58.3% | 46.1% |
| Migraine | 35 | 37.1% | 30.1% | 45.7% | 42.2% |
| Shoulder impairment | 24 | 25.0% | 14.3% | 37.5% | 53.0% |
| Major depressive disorder | 22 | 45.5% | 34.6% | 31.8% | 34.2% |
| Intervertebral disc syndrome | 21 | 4.8% | 18.7% | 66.7% | 48.0% |
| Ankle impairment | 20 | 25.0% | 16.8% | 50.0% | 50.4% |
Judge Luke Pelican's decisions by year
| Year | Decisions | Granted | Denied | Remanded |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | 202 | 31.2% | 32.2% | 50.0% |
| 2024 | 342 | 30.7% | 40.9% | 39.8% |
| 2025 | 90 | 32.2% | 52.2% | 44.4% |
| 2026 | 27 | 51.9% | 51.9% | 44.4% |
Why the Board granted or denied issues in Judge Luke Pelican's decisions
Most common reasons in grants
- Current diagnosis established26
- Service connection established7
- In-service noise exposure conceded5
- Caused by the service-connected disability3
- Conflicting medical opinions weighed2
- Board found private opinion adequate and probative2
- Aggravated by the service-connected disability2
- VA examiner: less likely than not related to service2
Most common reasons in denials
- No current diagnosis25
- VA examiner: less likely than not related to service15
- Service records negative or silent12
- Current diagnosis established10
- No continuity of symptomatology7
- Preponderance of the evidence against the claim4
- No in-service complaints, treatment or diagnosis4
- Already at the maximum schedular rating3
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 Luke Pelican decisions
Granted
Evidence in equipoise; Benefit of the doubt resolved in Veteran's favor; Private opinion more probative than VA opinion
Rating reduction from 20% to 10% was improper; Evidence did not reflect actual improvement in functioning; 10% rating insufficient for reduced strength and trophic changes
Veteran filed new claim March 26, 2019.; AOJ acknowledged claim as request for application.; Symptomology consistent between Sept 2019 and Feb 2020 VA exams.; Resolving doubt in Veteran's favor for earlier effective date.
Denied
Evidence persuasively weighs against a rating in excess of 40 percent.; No evidence of unfavorable ankylosis or symptoms more nearly approximating it.; Benefit-of-the-doubt rule does not apply as evidence weighs against the claim.
Evidence did not meet criteria for 40% rating; Normal reflexes, 4/5-5/5 strength, no muscle atrophy; No foot drop documented by multiple examinations
No medical diagnosis for dizziness; No objective findings on examination; No medical evidence or history to substantiate complaints; No medical literature supports link between hypertension and dizziness; Symptoms described as vague and unsubstantiated
Research your Judge Luke Pelican 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 (2023–2026) and can contain errors. It is updated automatically as new decisions are added.