Veterans Law Judge
Judge M.E. Larkin: BVA decisions and outcomes
From 2017 to 2025, Veterans Law Judge M.E. Larkin signed 7,651 Board decisions covering 14,971 condition issues. The judge granted 13.1% of those issues, denied 21.7% and remanded 62.6%. For the same mix of conditions, the rest of the Board granted 19.2% and remanded 48.0%, so this judge's grant rate is below the Board's and the remand rate is above it.
Decisions
7,651
2017–2025
Issues decided
14,971
One issue per condition per decision
Issues granted
13.1%
Board, same conditions: 19.2%
Issues remanded
62.6%
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 | 1,263 | 12.0% | 17.3% | 66.8% | 51.0% |
| Hearing loss | 765 | 16.6% | 19.5% | 46.4% | 34.5% |
| Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) | 663 | 22.5% | 28.9% | 49.6% | 38.0% |
| Hypertension | 487 | 10.9% | 17.2% | 67.6% | 48.6% |
| Intervertebral disc syndrome | 460 | 10.4% | 18.7% | 67.6% | 47.8% |
| Tinnitus | 439 | 46.0% | 39.6% | 26.2% | 22.7% |
| Sleep apnea syndromes (obstructive central mixed) | 432 | 15.7% | 26.3% | 70.1% | 50.2% |
| Degenerative arthritis of the spine (spondylosis) | 412 | 13.1% | 20.7% | 69.2% | 45.9% |
| Shoulder impairment | 338 | 4.4% | 14.4% | 76.3% | 52.8% |
| Peripheral nerve disorders | 313 | 13.4% | 20.6% | 61.3% | 51.6% |
| Ankle impairment | 303 | 9.9% | 16.9% | 66.7% | 50.3% |
| Hip impairment | 296 | 8.1% | 14.4% | 71.6% | 53.7% |
| Migraine | 271 | 14.4% | 30.3% | 60.9% | 42.0% |
| Diabetes mellitus | 261 | 16.5% | 20.0% | 50.6% | 40.0% |
| Paralysis of sciatic nerve or external popliteal nerve | 244 | 11.9% | 22.1% | 71.7% | 49.3% |
Judge M.E. Larkin's decisions by year
| Year | Decisions | Granted | Denied | Remanded |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2017 | 810 | 18.8% | 34.3% | 61.9% |
| 2018 | 1,077 | 26.5% | 33.4% | 64.1% |
| 2019 | 1,034 | 25.4% | 30.9% | 64.2% |
| 2020 | 1,119 | 27.9% | 32.0% | 65.1% |
| 2021 | 1,013 | 26.8% | 32.3% | 64.6% |
| 2022 | 803 | 23.8% | 26.7% | 67.4% |
| 2023 | 647 | 23.8% | 32.8% | 59.8% |
| 2024 | 863 | 21.7% | 29.8% | 48.2% |
| 2025 | 285 | 24.9% | 36.1% | 42.1% |
Why the Board granted or denied issues in Judge M.E. Larkin's decisions
Most common reasons in grants
- Current diagnosis established111
- In-service noise exposure conceded71
- Service connection established45
- Caused by the service-connected disability38
- Aggravated by the service-connected disability15
- Continuity of symptomatology since service14
- Already at the maximum schedular rating8
- Service records negative or silent8
Most common reasons in denials
- Preponderance of the evidence against the claim333
- No current diagnosis154
- Service records negative or silent118
- VA examiner: less likely than not related to service95
- No in-service complaints, treatment or diagnosis68
- Current diagnosis established42
- Already at the maximum schedular rating30
- Evidence persuasively weighs against service connection14
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 M.E. Larkin decisions
Granted
Evidence in approximate balance regarding acquired psychiatric disability and service connection; Benefit of the doubt applied to grant service connection; Presumptive PTSD diagnosis noted from PCL-5 screening
Benefit of the doubt afforded for rating beginning April 27, 2018.; Gabapentin prescription and consistent pain description support ameliorative effects.; Range of motion and other findings did not meet criteria for higher ratings.
Veteran testimony of instability and falls.; Instability consistent with 10 percent rating under old criteria.; Instability consistent with 10 percent rating under new criteria (no prescribed brace/device).
Denied
Range of motion limitations did not meet criteria for higher rating.; Veteran already compensated for right knee instability.; Painful motion alone does not warrant higher rating if already compensated.
Pre-May 5, 2022 limitation to 5 degrees is noncompensable.; Post-May 5, 2022 limitation to 10 degrees is 10 percent.; No evidence supports limitation to 15 degrees or more for higher rating.
In-service strain resolved without residuals by separation.; Post-service treatment records indicate onset of pain decades after service.; VA medical opinion found condition more likely due to age-related changes.
Research your Judge M.E. Larkin 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 (2017–2025) and can contain errors. It is updated automatically as new decisions are added.