Veterans Law Judge
Judge Nathaniel J. Doan: BVA decisions and outcomes
From 2017 to 2023, Veterans Law Judge Nathaniel J. Doan signed 6,282 Board decisions covering 12,979 condition issues. The judge granted 18.3% of those issues, denied 26.8% and remanded 51.4%. For the same mix of conditions, the rest of the Board granted 19.3% and remanded 47.8%, so this judge's grant rate is close to the Board's and the remand rate is above it.
Decisions
6,282
2017–2023
Issues decided
12,979
One issue per condition per decision
Issues granted
18.3%
Board, same conditions: 19.3%
Issues remanded
51.4%
Board, same conditions: 47.8%
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 | 1,065 | 17.4% | 17.3% | 50.0% | 51.1% |
| Hearing loss | 766 | 19.8% | 19.5% | 42.6% | 34.5% |
| Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) | 601 | 25.8% | 28.9% | 44.1% | 38.1% |
| Tinnitus | 445 | 49.9% | 39.5% | 21.1% | 22.8% |
| Degenerative arthritis of the spine (spondylosis) | 431 | 17.9% | 20.7% | 46.4% | 46.1% |
| Hypertension | 431 | 9.0% | 17.2% | 57.3% | 48.7% |
| Intervertebral disc syndrome | 377 | 20.4% | 18.6% | 49.1% | 48.0% |
| Sleep apnea syndromes (obstructive central mixed) | 342 | 24.6% | 26.2% | 50.0% | 50.3% |
| Shoulder impairment | 294 | 15.6% | 14.3% | 56.5% | 53.0% |
| Ankle impairment | 272 | 15.1% | 16.9% | 52.9% | 50.4% |
| Peripheral nerve disorders | 268 | 22.8% | 20.5% | 53.7% | 51.7% |
| Migraine | 259 | 27.0% | 30.2% | 51.7% | 42.1% |
| Diabetes mellitus | 233 | 18.0% | 20.0% | 37.3% | 40.1% |
| Hip impairment | 232 | 13.8% | 14.3% | 52.2% | 53.8% |
| Major depressive disorder | 171 | 35.7% | 34.6% | 33.3% | 34.2% |
Judge Nathaniel J. Doan's decisions by year
| Year | Decisions | Granted | Denied | Remanded |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2017 | 808 | 23.3% | 35.4% | 57.2% |
| 2018 | 1,043 | 29.2% | 37.7% | 59.9% |
| 2019 | 1,029 | 29.9% | 39.7% | 57.7% |
| 2020 | 960 | 27.8% | 37.0% | 58.5% |
| 2021 | 906 | 33.2% | 39.4% | 51.8% |
| 2022 | 550 | 36.4% | 36.4% | 47.5% |
| 2023 | 986 | 40.3% | 35.8% | 52.5% |
Why the Board granted or denied issues in Judge Nathaniel J. Doan's decisions
Most common reasons in grants
- Current diagnosis established181
- Continuity of symptomatology since service85
- Service connection established45
- Caused by the service-connected disability37
- In-service noise exposure conceded29
- New and material evidence received to reopen claim21
- Aggravated by the service-connected disability12
- Already at the maximum schedular rating9
Most common reasons in denials
- Preponderance of the evidence against the claim329
- No current diagnosis173
- VA examiner: less likely than not related to service148
- No in-service complaints, treatment or diagnosis104
- Service records negative or silent78
- Current diagnosis established63
- Already at the maximum schedular rating29
- No continuity of symptomatology27
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 Nathaniel J. Doan decisions
Granted
Inadequate VA examination; Credible testimony; Post-service diagnosis and treatment; Presumed related due to continuity of symptomatology
Veteran diagnosed with PTSD and other specified depressive disorder by private examiner.; Private examiner opined stressors met DSM criteria for traumatic event.; Stressor conceded due to service in Saudi Arabia and reported stressors consistent with service.; Veteran reported persistent symptoms and avoidance behaviors.; Private examiner opined symptoms caused clinically significant distress not attributable to other causes.
Symptoms caused deficiencies in most areas; Passive suicidal ideation does not cause total impairment; Olfactory hallucinations and whispers do not cause total impairment
Denied
Claim denied for rating higher than 10 percent for ACL deficiency.; No evidence of moderate recurrent subluxation or lateral instability.; Veteran did not report significant functional limitations or flares.
Evidence persuasively weighs against service connection; VA examiner opinion more probative than private opinion; No post-service medical evidence of knee disorder until two decades after service
Audiometric testing insufficient for higher rating; No objective difference from prior examination; No improvement in function shown
Research your Judge Nathaniel J. Doan 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 (2017–2023) and can contain errors. It is updated automatically as new decisions are added.