BVA Quarter 3 Report
Every quarter, the Board of Veterans Appeals publishes a report on the backlog of cases on their docket. This data can be used as a good guide for estimating how long an appeal will take once filed before the Board. Let’s take a look at the data:
A couple of things jump out. We can see that despite an increase in the number of staff at the Board of Veterans Appeals, the number of pending appeals has jumped this last quarter to 197,792. This represents less than a 1% jump, which is smaller than the nearly 8% jump from Q1 to Q2. The time to completion also ticked up slightly from 307 days to 311 days for Direct Reviews. The most noticeable jump was in the Hearings lane, which jump from 492 to 514.
On the bright side, the number of hearings held seems to have stabilized. Although hearings have been virtual for a while in light of the COVID-19 pandemic, the BVA only scheduled 5,341 in Q1, but increased that number to over 11,000 in both Q2 and Q3.
How long a particular case takes can vary significantly, and this report details averages. Other factors include whether or not the case can be Advanced on the Docket.
Contact the Experienced Veterans Benefits team at the Law Office of Andrew P. Gross for Assitance
Waiting on the VA is frustrating, and knowing whether the Board of Veterans Appeals is the right step for you can be a complicated decision. If you need help making that decision, it’s a good idea to contact a seasoned Veterans Benefits attorney at the Law Office of Andrew P. Gross, LLC.