To be honest:  50-50.  There are a lot of subjective factors that go into a decision. Some decisions are easy, like a name change, others less so, like changing your Survivor Benefit Plan (SBP) because you remarried and missed the deadline. Board members may never have served in the military. Members could have served during Vietnam, the “Cold War”, during Desert Storm, or since September 11th. They could be Soldiers working for the US Navy. As with all “juries,” members come with personal or professional biases. For example, you could have a board composed of a Vietnam veteran and OEF/OIF veteran, and your issue is related to PTSD. The Vietnam member’s decision could be informed by his experiences in combat in Vietnam, and the OEF/OIF veteran is informed by his experience in Iraq or Afghanistan. Each likely has completely different views of combat and PTSD. One might be a former alcoholic and takes a stand that recovering alcoholics have a higher standard to meet. In other words, you never know who is going to be on your Board and what their personal biases may be.