VA Disability

I have written previously on the Top Ten security clearance issues and problems that I see in my law practice.  It gets a lot of views at our web site so I thought I would come up with a Top Ten list as it relates to VA disability claims filed by military veterans.   

I meet with or talk by phone to at least 2 to 3 veterans each day.  These are veterans who contact me and ask me to help them fight the VA due to the VA’s denial of the veteran’s request for disability compensation.  Out of these veterans that I see each day, at least one will tell me that he or she believes that the VA is purposely denying his or her disability claim and that “the VA is waiting for me to die.”  This comment is so prevalent that I almost always finish the rest of t

As of March 24, 2015, the VA (Veterans Administration) implemented a new regulation requiring that all VA claims be filed on standardized forms. The VA will also no longer accept informal claims in order to establish a claimant’s effective date for benefits. Federal Register rule changes were announced here: Standard Claims and Appeals Forms; Final Rule

This is a sad story.  The Veteran who languished on a VA list for a long time has, unfortunately, passed away.

I always tell my Veteran clients to expect long delays by the Veterans Administration in their attempts to get VA disability benefits.

If veterans come to us with a VA disability claim that has been denied by the VA, they are understandably frustrated and wondering what they can do to ultimately prevail on their VA disability claim.

Important Change in the VA Claims Process

Many of the veterans that we represent lament the fact that it takes the VA so long to decide their claim and for their claim to work its way through the convoluted VA system.

This is a question we get asked repeatedly by the Veterans that we represent. There is no doubt that there is a very long lag time and delay when the VA processes a disability claim. Veterans have complained about this problem for years.

When a Veteran submits a claim for VA disability, there are very strict deadlines in place if the Veteran does not initially get the exact disability compensation that he or she thinks should be awarded. Once a Veteran receives a letter denying in whole or in part the Veteran’s claim, the Veteran has one year from the date of that letter, which is on the top part of the letter, to submit a Notice of Disagreement and notice of Intent to Appeal.