Veterans Law Judge
Judge Sonja S. An: BVA decisions and outcomes
From 2021 to 2022, Veterans Law Judge Sonja S. An signed 267 Board decisions covering 621 condition issues. The judge granted 12.7% of those issues, denied 42.7% and remanded 42.5%. For the same mix of conditions, the rest of the Board granted 19.9% and remanded 46.9%, so this judge's grant rate is below the Board's and the remand rate is below it.
Decisions
267
2021–2022
Issues decided
621
One issue per condition per decision
Issues granted
12.7%
Board, same conditions: 19.9%
Issues remanded
42.5%
Board, same conditions: 46.9%
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 | 67 | 6.0% | 17.3% | 43.3% | 51.1% |
| Degenerative arthritis of the spine (spondylosis) | 29 | 20.7% | 20.7% | 27.6% | 46.1% |
| Hearing loss | 24 | 12.5% | 19.5% | 33.3% | 34.6% |
| Intervertebral disc syndrome | 21 | 4.8% | 18.7% | 57.1% | 48.0% |
Judge Sonja S. An's decisions by year
| Year | Decisions | Granted | Denied | Remanded |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 120 | 29.2% | 56.7% | 54.2% |
| 2022 | 147 | 29.9% | 61.9% | 47.6% |
Why the Board granted or denied issues in Judge Sonja S. An's decisions
Most common reasons in grants
- Current diagnosis established3
- Already at the maximum schedular rating2
Most common reasons in denials
- VA examiner: less likely than not related to service15
- Preponderance of the evidence against the claim13
- Service records negative or silent10
- No in-service complaints, treatment or diagnosis9
- Current diagnosis established6
- No current diagnosis6
- Already at the maximum schedular rating4
- Criteria for higher rating not met3
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 Sonja S. An decisions
Granted
PTSD symptoms met criteria for 70% rating prior to Feb 12, 2020; Private mental evaluation noted anger issues and confusion; Board found symptoms consistent with occupational and social impairment
Current diagnosis of asthma confirmed by VA exam; In-service treatment for breathing problem documented; Favorable VA opinion linking asthma to service; Evidence in relative equipoise, doubt resolved in Veteran's favor
VA examination noted occupational and social impairment due to depression, paranoia, disturbances in motivation and mood, difficulty with work and social relationships, and challenges adapting to stress.; Neuropsychological Evaluation indicated attention and memory deficits affecting daily tasks.; Psychiatry Care Note mentioned frequent arguments with wife.; Evidence collectively shows deficiencies in family relations, judgment, or thinking.
Denied
Current disability found; STRs silent for complaints; Separation exam showed no significant shift; Later VA exam found less likelihood of service connection
No nexus between current disability and in-service injury.; VA examiner opinion found credible.; Buddy statements lacked probative weight due to lack of timing.
Service treatment records silent for complaints, treatment, or diagnoses; Blood pressure readings during service were normal; VA examiner found hypertension less likely than not related to service-connected conditions; VA examiner noted hypertension predated diabetes and coronary artery disease; Contributing factors included obesity, alcohol use, and smoking history
Research your Judge Sonja S. An 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 (2021–2022) and can contain errors. It is updated automatically as new decisions are added.