Veterans Law Judge
Judge Scott W. Dale: BVA decisions and outcomes
From 2019 to 2026, Veterans Law Judge Scott W. Dale signed 1,764 Board decisions covering 3,478 condition issues. The judge granted 22.9% of those issues, denied 24.4% and remanded 50.6%. For the same mix of conditions, the rest of the Board granted 20.0% and remanded 47.1%, so this judge's grant rate is above the Board's and the remand rate is above it.
Decisions
1,764
2019–2026
Issues decided
3,478
One issue per condition per decision
Issues granted
22.9%
Board, same conditions: 20.0%
Issues remanded
50.6%
Board, same conditions: 47.1%
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 | 230 | 16.5% | 17.3% | 46.1% | 51.1% |
| Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) | 157 | 35.7% | 28.9% | 36.9% | 38.1% |
| Sleep apnea syndromes (obstructive central mixed) | 153 | 35.9% | 26.2% | 52.9% | 50.3% |
| Hearing loss | 139 | 22.3% | 19.5% | 30.9% | 34.6% |
| Degenerative arthritis of the spine (spondylosis) | 115 | 28.7% | 20.6% | 48.7% | 46.1% |
| Tinnitus | 99 | 51.5% | 39.6% | 24.2% | 22.7% |
| Hypertension | 91 | 25.3% | 17.1% | 45.1% | 48.7% |
| Shoulder impairment | 87 | 18.4% | 14.3% | 62.1% | 53.0% |
| Intervertebral disc syndrome | 81 | 19.8% | 18.7% | 56.8% | 48.0% |
| Peripheral nerve disorders | 79 | 16.5% | 20.6% | 69.6% | 51.7% |
| Migraine | 75 | 26.7% | 30.2% | 49.3% | 42.2% |
| Hip impairment | 69 | 18.8% | 14.3% | 59.4% | 53.8% |
| Diabetes mellitus | 61 | 36.1% | 19.9% | 32.8% | 40.1% |
| Major depressive disorder | 55 | 43.6% | 34.6% | 41.8% | 34.2% |
| Paralysis of sciatic nerve or external popliteal nerve | 48 | 14.6% | 22.0% | 68.8% | 49.5% |
Judge Scott W. Dale's decisions by year
| Year | Decisions | Granted | Denied | Remanded |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2019 | 54 | 25.9% | 42.6% | 68.5% |
| 2020 | 45 | 20.0% | 35.6% | 68.9% |
| 2021 | 323 | 29.1% | 41.8% | 63.5% |
| 2022 | 257 | 38.5% | 35.0% | 58.4% |
| 2023 | 52 | 44.2% | 11.5% | 55.8% |
| 2024 | 571 | 42.6% | 26.6% | 50.4% |
| 2025 | 296 | 42.9% | 33.8% | 45.3% |
| 2026 | 166 | 34.9% | 43.4% | 59.0% |
Why the Board granted or denied issues in Judge Scott W. Dale's decisions
Most common reasons in grants
- Current diagnosis established77
- Service connection established24
- Caused by the service-connected disability16
- In-service noise exposure conceded12
- Continuity of symptomatology since service8
- VA examiner: less likely than not related to service6
- No contrary medical evidence4
- No contrary medical nexus evidence3
Most common reasons in denials
- Preponderance of the evidence against the claim42
- No current diagnosis39
- No in-service complaints, treatment or diagnosis29
- VA examiner: less likely than not related to service26
- Service records negative or silent22
- Current diagnosis established22
- Already at the maximum schedular rating7
- Symptoms did not meet criteria for 100% rating5
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 Scott W. Dale decisions
Granted
Service treatment records noted routine noise exposure; Veteran's MOS consistent with noise exposure; Lay evidence competent and credible; Resolving doubt in Veteran's favor
Post-TKR disability rated under DC 5055.; Pre-existing condition offset improper as post-TKR is fundamentally different disability.; Minimum rating of 30 percent met.
Veteran served in Thailand near Udorn RTAFB perimeter; Veteran's statements regarding service and exposure found competent and credible; Evidence in approximate balance regarding proximity to base perimeter; Benefit of the doubt resolved in Veteran's favor; Type II diabetes mellitus is presumptively linked to herbicide exposure
Denied
No current diagnosis of CFS; Symptoms contemplated by other service-connected conditions (fibromyalgia, PTSD); No objective evidence to support CFS diagnosis
No current diagnosis of hypothyroidism; No persistent or recurrent symptoms; Veteran competent to report symptoms, not diagnose
Service treatment records negative for radiculopathy; Post-service medical records negative for radiculopathy; VA examiners found no radicular pain or symptoms; Veteran not competent to relate neurological disorder to service incident; Evidence weighs against diagnosis of radiculopathy related to service
Research your Judge Scott W. Dale 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 (2019–2026) and can contain errors. It is updated automatically as new decisions are added.