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Legal Representation For Va Appeals

Armand

Asked by Armand,

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Armand Explorer

Armand

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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.

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rthomass Community Regular

rthomass

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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

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Ricky Grand Master

Ricky

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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.

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Armand Explorer

Armand

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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

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Armand Explorer

Armand

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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

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broncovet Grand Master

broncovet

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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.

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Pete53 Grand Master

Pete53

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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.

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Teac Mentor

Teac

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Having beem shafted because of an incompenant DAV service officer I learned that it is my claim. No one cares more about your claim than you do. Noone should know your claim better than you do, if fact I will go as far to say that noone could know your claim better than you could, if you only apply youself. I do not trust lawyers, they are only motivated by money, and will be willing to settle for 10% even if they felt that you had 20% coming. Most service officers don't have the time to devote to your claim, and many don't really understand the process although you are led to believe that they do. If yoiu are able you really should do your own claim, if this is not posssible than a close family member should step in. A lawyer or SO should be the last choice. JMHO

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coconutvee Explorer

coconutvee

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I'm trying to find a Lawyer to file for SSDI again. I want to find a Lawyer that deals with Disabled Veterans issues since I'm 100% P&T. Most of the lawyers that I spoke with seem only interested in making a buck. I know that is waht they do for a living, but I need one that knows both the VA and SS systems. Where can I begin to try to find such a Lawyer in Miami, FL? I've contacted NOSSCR for a refferal, but when I asked two lawyers they did not seem to know much about Veterans Affairs. Can anyone help? Thanks

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Berta Grand Master

Berta

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Have you contacted ALLSUP?

http://www.allsup.com/Home.aspx

They are SSDI disability experts- if they take your case they charge a fee comparable to an attorney-

A SSA attorney would not take our case regarding a reconsideration request.

I filed it for my husband myself with the supporting evidence.

4 months later I called the attorney and told him he just lost over 4 thousand bucks- (20 or 25 % of the retro we got from SSA)

He said he would sure start looking at VA Compensation differently-

The SSA awarded the reconsideration solely on VA medical records.

Here is another link for attorneys for SSA:

http://www.disabilitylawyers.com/

If the SSA denied due to a question of work credits- that is something a lawyer might not be able to help with at all.

A question of disability hoqwever is different.

Did the SSA have full knowledge that you were 100% P & T from the VA when they denied?

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john999 Grand Master

john999

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Armand

I hired a lawyer to help me do a CUE claim. The DAV guy just laughed at me when I told him what I wanted to do. If you have a complicated claim that involves some decent retro I think that is a major incentive for a lawyer to take your case. They get 20% of the retro so they are motivated. You kindly DAV guy gets the same if you win or lose that 20 years of retro. If you were arrested for a crime would you rather have pay a good criminal defense lawyer, or rely on a public defender?

The public defender, like a VSO, tells you to take a plea.

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