Legal Representation For Va Appeals

[Armand]

Does anyone have anything positive to say about hiring a law firm that is knowledgeable in veteran's appeals? Good or bad, let me know.

[rthomass]

Armand I would no longer initiate a claim without a lawyer than I would go into a war without body armor and the a rifle. Thses people are not your friend. If for only the intimidation factor I do believe in having a lawyer. This does not mean tha you should depend only a lawyer to handle a claim you must be proactive for it is your claim ! Assist the Lawyer...Do research....In other words be involved. I know there are good Vet Reps I just have never found one.

Randall

[Ricky]

Armand I would no longer initiate a claim without a lawyer than I would go into a war without body armor and the a rifle. Thses people are not your friend. If for only the intimidation factor I do believe in having a lawyer. This does not mean tha you should depend only a lawyer to handle a claim you must be proactive for it is your claim ! Assist the Lawyer...Do research....In other words be involved. I know there are good Vet Reps I just have never found one.

Randall

Randall is correct. Although it is the stated mission to help poor, battle weary veterans keep in mind that when you file your claim YOU ARE FILING A CLAIM AGAINST THE UNITED STATES. And as with all insurance companies they will fight you to the end with their army of lawyers.

[Armand]

Armand I would no longer initiate a claim without a lawyer than I would go into a war without body armor and the a rifle. Thses people are not your friend. If for only the intimidation factor I do believe in having a lawyer. This does not mean tha you should depend only a lawyer to handle a claim you must be proactive for it is your claim ! Assist the Lawyer...Do research....In other words be involved. I know there are good Vet Reps I just have never found one.

Randall

[Armand]

Randall:

I know what you mean about competent Vet Reps. A lot of the ones I have dealt with don't know their ass from a hole in the ground. Plus, their turnover rate is probably similar to MacDonald's. Thanks.

Armand

[broncovet]

The DAV has the position that a Veteran should not have to pay an attorney to get from the VA what is due him.

I disagree with the DAV position and here is why.

Who should decide if you should hire an attorney to collect your money? The DAV? Washington Politicians? Your dog? None of these. THE VETERAN, and ONLY the Veteran should decide whether or not he needs an attorney. Veterans have fought for freedoms, such as the right to an attorney and deserve these rights for themselves, without the DAV trying to take them away.

YOU know your case, your bills and committments, your family issues better than any of us. You have responsibility to take care of your family, not the DAV. AS such, you should decide wheter or not it is in your best interest to give up about a quarter of your future "retro" benefits by hiring a lawyer. You should be able to spend that money as YOU see fit, and that includes hiring a lawyer to get it.

Some Vets, no doubt, dont want to have anything to do with a lawyer. Maybe they are even a lawyer themselves, or opt to do it themselves, or have non lawyers help them.

Other Vets, maybe they have been through the ringer and say enough is enough, bring on the lawyers. Maybe their DAV or other service officer was ineffective. Sure the DAV has statistics that they can get more money than a lawyer. However, someone once said that 90% of all statistics are wrong 50% of the time. I say if the DAV was 100% effective, then all claims throught the DAV would be approved the first time (WITHOUT APPEAL) and no VET would WANT to pay a lawyer. Even then, if the Vet wanted to spend his money on lawyers, or bubble gum, I say he earned his disability compensation, so he should decide how to spend it.

For me, I am, like you, seriously considering a lawyer. I have been through 6 years, and several Veterans Service Officers. The VFW "dropped" my case..several years ago.."they" didnt think I had a good chance of winning. I am glad I did not listen to them. I hear they often drop difficult to prove cases, so that makes their success rate higher. My suggestion is that you try a NATIONAL SERVICE Officer first (because, in my opinion, they are better trained than local yokels). If you dont get the result you want, hire a lawyer to get your money. If the lawyer doesnt do right by you, fire him, and hire another.

[Pete53]

The DAV and other Service Organizations are afraid that as Veterans use their own lawyers that they will lose Members and access to people who would use their services.

The problem is that many of the Service Officers are only slightly less desperate than a Veteran who is seeking Service Connection.