GatorNavy

You've pretty well hit the mark....all of the guvernmint agencies are like that. Social Security Disability, DOL-VETS just about any agency that has any type of "laws" for Veterans. DOL-VETS is another scam. In some states the VRE takes input from DOL/VETS to deny IU. In my state it's a fact. The USERRA laws are a sham too. At least we have some good Veteran attorneys that can make a difference for us. I know what the "system" is designed to do and I won't waste any energy trying to change it. All of my energies are focused on "beating" the system at it's own game to get what rightfully belongs to me. The main tactics they rely on is to delay and deny until one gets frustrated, sees no light at the end of the tunnel and gives up. Maybe a Vet just waits on a "hamburgered" claim to fix itself and then misses the appeal timelines. From what I have seen, it happens all of the time. "maybe the claims backlog is all a manufactured crisis" You can bet that it is. You mean the government doesn't know about the wars being fought for the last 10 years? Or that AO doesn't cause cancer or a slew of other ailments? The effects of ionizing radiation after 30 to 50 years. Allison Hickey has pronounced that they have now "crushed" the backlog. Well now, did more Veterans get their compensation approved? Me thinks that the appeal elephant has consumed the backlog!

You are right they don't follow the rules. The M21 is terse enough that they can skirt around the issues quite a bit. I think being familiar with the M21 helps to figure out the madness though. Senior VA folks will tell ya that if you don't have air-tight new and material evidence that should absolutely change the outcome of the decision, then don't bother with a reconsideration (a re-open within the one year). The clock starts ticking one year from the decision date and does not stop when a reconsideration is filed. As long as your NOD was submitted within a year of the decision date and before the VSO's recon it's just a guess on my part that you should be able to hound them into sending you a SOC. If the recon went in before your NOD then you could have a problem if the year has passed. I submitted a recission of the VSO's POA and then a recission of the reconsideration and then re-submitted the same NOD before I actually started seeing some movement (ie a SOC). But I hounded the VARO constantly and ended up with a couple of months left on the one year clock. They should send the form-9 with the SOC and then you have 60 days to get your form-9 submitted for an appeal. Oh and by the way thanks for the appeals presentation. I've got my first BVA hearing scheduled now.

A reconsideration (or re-opening of a claim before the year is up to submit a NOD) has been a useful tool for me (ONCE). IT is not an appeal perse but a statement to the effect that the VA should have more evidence that will influence the original decision. It is a process that I feel deviates from the norm and should be used only under special circumstances. However, it can be useful and get some bucks sooner than later. Worked for me anyway, When I started my other claim; I actually fired my VSO because he submitted a recon which I knew would go nowhere and just eat up appeal time that would delay my benefits. Been on my own since then with a little help from my friends. On one of the denials I actually submitted some "new and material" evidence that would have made it very difficult for the VARO to keep denying the issues. However, I filed the reconsideration within a month after I received the original denied decision with the new and material evidence. I ended up SCing a secondary and bumping up the total from 40% to 80% in about six months time. Since then I have filed a NOD and after the SOC; filed the form-9 and now awaiting a BVA hearing Gator