Veterans Law Judge
Judge S. Bush: BVA decisions and outcomes
From 2017 to 2026, Veterans Law Judge S. Bush signed 7,085 Board decisions covering 14,201 condition issues. The judge granted 27.8% of those issues, denied 17.0% and remanded 51.8%. For the same mix of conditions, the rest of the Board granted 19.4% and remanded 47.8%, so this judge's grant rate is above the Board's and the remand rate is above it.
Decisions
7,085
2017–2026
Issues decided
14,201
One issue per condition per decision
Issues granted
27.8%
Board, same conditions: 19.4%
Issues remanded
51.8%
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 | 1,250 | 28.2% | 17.2% | 52.9% | 51.1% |
| Hearing loss | 778 | 26.1% | 19.4% | 42.9% | 34.5% |
| Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) | 622 | 42.8% | 28.8% | 34.4% | 38.1% |
| Tinnitus | 493 | 57.0% | 39.5% | 18.7% | 22.8% |
| Degenerative arthritis of the spine (spondylosis) | 445 | 30.3% | 20.6% | 49.2% | 46.0% |
| Sleep apnea syndromes (obstructive central mixed) | 435 | 28.0% | 26.2% | 58.6% | 50.3% |
| Hypertension | 423 | 33.1% | 17.0% | 47.5% | 48.8% |
| Intervertebral disc syndrome | 357 | 25.8% | 18.6% | 56.3% | 48.0% |
| Shoulder impairment | 288 | 24.0% | 14.2% | 58.0% | 53.0% |
| Migraine | 284 | 48.9% | 30.0% | 35.6% | 42.2% |
| Ankle impairment | 272 | 18.8% | 16.8% | 59.2% | 50.4% |
| Hip impairment | 257 | 21.4% | 14.3% | 60.3% | 53.8% |
| Peripheral nerve disorders | 249 | 22.5% | 20.5% | 58.2% | 51.6% |
| Diabetes mellitus | 214 | 27.1% | 19.9% | 41.1% | 40.0% |
| Cervical spine limitation of motion | 156 | 17.9% | 13.1% | 64.7% | 58.3% |
Judge S. Bush's decisions by year
| Year | Decisions | Granted | Denied | Remanded |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2017 | 568 | 23.4% | 28.9% | 57.9% |
| 2018 | 821 | 35.6% | 27.8% | 58.1% |
| 2019 | 863 | 46.1% | 21.9% | 60.5% |
| 2020 | 855 | 44.6% | 23.6% | 58.9% |
| 2021 | 771 | 45.8% | 22.8% | 55.1% |
| 2022 | 622 | 43.4% | 20.6% | 56.1% |
| 2023 | 696 | 46.0% | 21.4% | 57.8% |
| 2024 | 632 | 42.1% | 23.7% | 53.0% |
| 2025 | 889 | 37.9% | 26.5% | 51.1% |
| 2026 | 368 | 34.8% | 28.5% | 44.6% |
Why the Board granted or denied issues in Judge S. Bush's decisions
Most common reasons in grants
- Current diagnosis established466
- Service connection established113
- Continuity of symptomatology since service109
- In-service noise exposure conceded51
- Caused by the service-connected disability48
- New and material evidence received to reopen claim20
- Presumption of soundness not rebutted20
- Service records negative or silent17
Most common reasons in denials
- No current diagnosis108
- VA examiner: less likely than not related to service97
- Preponderance of the evidence against the claim68
- No in-service complaints, treatment or diagnosis59
- Current diagnosis established51
- Already at the maximum schedular rating41
- Service records negative or silent37
- Continuity of symptomatology since service24
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 S. Bush decisions
Granted
Current diagnosis of HSV-1; In-service diagnosis in 1997; Nexus established by in-service diagnosis
Competent and credible lay statements from Veteran and spouse corroborate in-service head injury.; Silence of STRs not fatal given circumstances of alleged injury.; Greater weight afforded to probative private medical opinions linking TBI to in-service trauma.
PTSD symptoms consistent with 70% rating; Benefit of the doubt applied in Veteran's favor; VA examinations supported 70% rating
Denied
No current diagnosis of chronic fatigue syndrome; Lay testimony not competent to diagnose complex medical condition; VA examiner found Veteran did not meet VA definition for CFS
Symptoms most closely approximate 30 percent rating criteria; No evidence of symptoms for higher rating; VA examiner's findings support 30 percent rating
Range of motion (flexion 150-155, abduction 160) did not meet criteria for higher ratings (45 or 25 degrees); Pain and functional limitations noted but did not further restrict range of motion to warrant higher rating; Ameliorative effects of over-the-counter pain relievers not shown to impact functional impairment beyond pain reduction
Research your Judge S. Bush 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.