VA Disability Lawyers???

L

Linus

PEB Forum Regular Member
I got off AD in 2004 and got 0% disability rating after 9 years of service. I have been in the Reserves since, I have done a lot of time on AD again, racking up a lot of different compensable conditions. I met with one of my providers this week and he recommended I file again with the VA for both the old stuff (AD) and the new stuff from the Reserves. He recommended I hire a Lawyer specifically familiar with VA disabilities submissions.

So my question is, do you (Jason, et al) know any good VA lawyers up in the Mass or NH areas?
 
A lawyer is not needed to file a claim and cannot charge for the claim filing part of the process. They rarely help, as the initial part is simply gathering evidence, its not until the board of appeals that making sure the argument for why you were denied is framed correctly becomes a factor.

Find a VSO with a veteran organization (American Legion, DVA, etc.) or your state VA to help file the initial claim.
 
Lawyers are specifically not allowed under VA regs to represent veterans for a fee until an initial denial on a claim has been issued by the VA and the claimant appeals:

"By law, no person or organization may charge claimants a fee for assistance in preparing applications for VA benefits or presenting claims to VA. VA-accredited agents and attorneys may charge fees for assistance on a claim for VA benefits only after VA has issued a decision on a claim, a Notice of Disagreement has been filed initiating an appeal of that decision, and the agent or attorney has complied with the power-of-attorney requirements in 38 C.F.R. § 14.631 and the fee agreement requirements in 38 C.F.R. § 14.636(g). 38 U.S.C. § 5904(c)(1); 38 C.F.R. § 14.636(c)."
http://www.va.gov/OGC/accreditation.asp

HOWEVER....there are ethical opinions out there that suggest that there are ways "around" these regulations (basically, but not charging for the filing, but, charging for the advice prior to filing). Most attorneys who practice before the VA will not be interested in this type of work-around because the "real money" to be made comes on representing a member on an appeal that is limited to 20% of back payment; this means that "new cases" are not particularly interesting to attorneys....just to illustrate, the "best" claims are cases that are decades old, have a high percentage likely to be granted and have a basis for retroactive entitlement to decades earlier. (I do not practice directly in initial appeals before the VA, so I have no interest or conflict in this statement).
 
Linus said:
I got off AD in 2004 and got 0% disability rating after 9 years of service. I have been in the Reserves since, I have done a lot of time on AD again, racking up a lot of different compensable conditions. I met with one of my providers this week and he recommended I file again with the VA for both the old stuff (AD) and the new stuff from the Reserves. He recommended I hire a Lawyer specifically familiar with VA disabilities submissions.

So my question is, do you (Jason, et al) know any good VA lawyers up in the Mass or NH areas?
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I have seen a fair amount of support from the American Bar Association for more pro-bono work with VA claims. You might contact your state Bar Association, or local law schools who have clinics that process initial VA claims. As stated above, an attorney is "prevented" from receiving compensation when they file an initial application. So, I would look for a pro-bono attorney, law school clinic, or other VSO or legal clinic.
 
Thank you all, Jason, Scout, and pittpan for your advice. (Jason and all who help, I can imagine you get a lot of satisfaction doing this and helping military members).
Like I said in my original post, I have the old stuff (4 maladies) that were submitted to the VA back in 2004 and got 0% back in between AD and AFRES. My AMVETS guy wants one of my providers to fill out a VA FM 21-0960P for 3 of those conditions, but my Doc is advising me to get a lawyer, b/c there is potential for significant (15 years) back-pay and significant disability ratings. So I am in a catch-22 right now and that's why I'm trying to find a lawyer (preferably in Mass or NH) that is very familiar with VA submittals.
 
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