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I received the autopsy report last week. Yes, the lawyer asked me to fax a request for a 90 day extension. I sent Dr Valette an email two days ago but have not heard back from him.

I'm upset that I missed it. I was not able to get online. I will make sure to catch the show in the archives. Thank you for all the information Buck!

That's what I thought too. I read somewhere that lawyers are permitted to charge between 20% - 33%. His name is Joseph R. Moore according to my research he has won many cases for widows but if someone here could confirm that for me that would be great. I did sign a privacy act waiver and sent it to Attig Steel Law. They said they will request the cfile first, but if I get the cfile before them I can send them a copy. Wondering if I should wait on them or not.

I got the call from the lawyer's office today. They said they think I have a good case and they officially offered me representation. His fee is 33% if I win the appeal. Is 33% about what every lawyer charges? I also received all of my husband's medical records from Ft. Jackson where he was found non deployable. I emailed Dr. Valette as well.

Great, thank you both!!

No, I didnt see it. Thank you for sharing! How do I access it?

I received several records in the mail on Friday that were not considered. I got the original police report with the witness' statements. I also received the autopsy report and some medical records from the VA medical center my husband was seen once before he passed away. Now I am waiting to get the cfile and I'm hoping to hear from the lawyer in my area who told me I had a good case. I hope they can represent me because as Buck suggested I did do some research and it looks like he won several DIC claims for widows.

I'm hoping the lawyer will be able to help me with that. Does a widow's social security benefits stop when she receives Dependency and Indemnity Compensation?

That helps a lot. Thank you, Buck! I have learned so much on here in the past two weeks!

The office of Mr. Attig got back to me right away and they said they would request my husband's cfile right away. The office of the lawyer in my area also called me today and told me that I have a good case and that I should be hearing from them next week. They said they just wanted to give me a call so I don't go through the weekend worrying. If both lawyers want to represent me, who do I go with? I'm not familiar with being represented by a lawyer. Any advice is greatly appreciated.

I have not found a lawyer yet so I will definitely contact Mr. Attig. Thank you for that information Buck!

Your story gives me hope! Thank you, Berta. Thank you so much for all your help. I will continue to fight for my husband...he deserved more than the 10 % he was awarded.

I'm still waiting to hear from the lawyer in my area but one lawyer called me today and told me that they won't be able to help me at this point but once I have a new IMO I can contact them back and they would take a look at the statement. I will see what the other lawyer will say but if they won't represent me either I guess I'm on my own.

I found this communication from them. I'm confused why they first granted the pension and then cancelled it. I wasn't working when my husband passed away but I started getting SS for my son and I.

I just talked to their intake coordinator and she explained to me how the process works. She will look at all the documents I submitted and talk to the lawyers and they will let me know if they will represent me. She said she will make sure to speed things up for me since my case is time sensitive. I will take look Chris Attig up too just in case. Thanks for all your help!

I have been in contact with a lawyer. I hope they will be able to help me. They asked me to request the extension and that they will go through all the documents I submitted. The lawyer is Bergmann & Moore, LLC in MD. I had contacted several people when I was looking for a lawyer and also received a response from a Equal Justice Works AmeriCorps Legal Fellow / Emory Law's Volunteer Clinic for Veterans and they asked to call me so they can talk a little more about the situation. Who should I talk to? Has anyone here worked with Bergman & Moore?

They told the congressman's office that they can't expedite it faster than 30 days. Claims may be expedited for terminal illness or homelessness. They originally told me 10 months so 30 days sounds much better I guess.

Exactly! He was found unfit for duty and was awarded 10%. I submitted one buddy statement for my claim but it seems as if was never submitted by the AL. In the communication it just mentions my statement and my brother in laws (his brother) statement. I'm not sure if my husband had included other buddy statements so I'm hoping to get the cfile asap.

Thank you so much for all this great information. I will forward this to the lawyer.

One of the lawyers I contacted in my area contacted me after reviewing all of the paperwork I emailed and suggested I send a fax to the BVA and request an extension of another 90 days. Last time I called the BVA told me that they are processing claims from April of 2011 and mine was from August 2012 but I will send the request just in case.

No, I didn't pay for her. The American Legion found her. I don't even have a copy of her statement. I'm trying to get a copy of it.

Thank you so much for locating the case for me, Berta! I really can't afford paying $1400 right now. I am trying to get all the medical records I can and then I will contact Brett Valette? I also work for the FDA so I was going to ask some of the doctors there maybe they can suggest a doctor who would write that statement for me. It sounds like we were in the same boat...I also feel like I am playing beat the clock right now!

Your 21-534 was filed in time to be eligible for accrued. That was separate issue and was a separate claim. They are saying that there were no accrued payments. My husband received a lump sum payment before he passed away. He got the payment 3 days before he passed away. We were on vacation so we didn’t know the decision the VA made, we just saw the payment on our account that’s how we found out that he got the 10%. That’s when he got very upset. So he passed away in April and in May they stop those payments of only $123 they awarded him.

I want to also mention that my husband died 0.3 mile walking distance from the house he grew up in since he was 15. My husband had a great sense of direction. He would mentally update his geographical position by keeping track of visual evidence. Therefore, he knew that after the steep downhill road he was driving on a a red light would follow shortly. He had taken that road so many times before. So for him to operate the motorcycle in such a reckless manner is mind-blowing to me. It doesn't sound like something he would do on a street so familiar to him. He was a very intelligent man so I don't believe that what happened that day was just an "accident."