The VA Must Explain Your Denial — and Half the Time It Doesn't
Here's a power most veterans never use: the VA is legally required to explain why it denied you — including why it rejected the evidence in your favor. In our analysis of 42,675 decisions, the adequacy of the Board's "reasons and bases" was at issue in roughly half of them. When the Board ignores your favorable evidence or fails to explain its reasoning, that's not just frustrating — it's the single most common reason the Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims sends a claim back.
What the law requires
Under 38 U.S.C. 7104(d)(1), every Board decision must include a written statement of the reasons or bases for its findings. The courts (Gilbert v. Derwinski, Caluza v. Brown) require that statement to be adequate enough for you to understand the decision and for a court to review it. Specifically, the Board must:
- Address the evidence that supports your claim, not just the evidence against it;
- Explain why it found favorable evidence unpersuasive;
- Make findings on every issue and theory you reasonably raised.
The Board recites the negative evidence, grants it all the weight, and never mentions your nexus letter or buddy statement — or mentions it and dismisses it in a sentence with no explanation. That silence is the error. A court can't uphold a decision it can't follow.
How to use it on appeal
- Point to the favorable evidence the Board ignored. "The decision never addressed Dr. X's positive nexus opinion."
- Point to the theory it skipped. If you raised secondary service connection and the Board only decided direct, that's an unaddressed issue.
- Frame it as a 7104(d) violation at the Board (in a Notice of Disagreement / appeal) or at the CAVC.
- Pair it with the benefit-of-the-doubt argument: if the Board didn't explain why the evidence preponderated against you, it can't have properly applied 3.102.
You don't always have to add new evidence to win an appeal — sometimes the existing record already supports you and the Board simply failed to explain why it ruled against you. Inadequate reasons and bases is the most common reason claims get remanded, and it's hiding in plain sight in most denial letters.
Frequently Asked Questions
Under 38 USC 7104(d), the Board must give a written explanation of the reasons for its decision — including why it rejected evidence favorable to the veteran. An inadequate explanation is a legal error.
The most common reason is inadequate reasons and bases — the Board failed to address favorable evidence, didn't explain why it was unpersuasive, or skipped an issue the veteran raised.
Yes. If the Board failed to adequately explain its denial or ignored evidence already in your file, a higher review or the court can send it back without you adding anything new.
Identify the specific favorable evidence the Board ignored (like a nexus letter), any theory of entitlement it failed to decide, and frame it as a violation of 38 USC 7104(d).
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