Reviewing A C-file

[Bonzai]

Tomorrow I have an appointment with my lawyer to review my c-file, which was sent to him by the VA. I have been searching for a thread that details what I should be looking for.

• I have never seen it, so I don't know if anything is missing.
  
• I know I should look at the comments for my prior S/C decisions.
  

I have filed a NOD on an increase because I am qualified for a larger increase than the one awarded, according to their guidelines. As a part of the letter of increase sent to me, they claim that I never sent back paperwork requested; which I have to agree with, since I never received the paperwork to send back. Is this just me, or does that happen often?

[Bonzai]

Thank you for the responses to my question.

Berta, I admit I had to look up what VCAA (Veterans Claims Assistance Act)was and I have never seen one. So it goes to follow, I never received anything from the Dingess-Hartman decision that the "VA must tell the veteran how they will rate the disability per the Schedule of Ratings and also how they will determine the earliest effective date if the claim succeeds" or the Kent decision, "another important case decided by the CAVC in 2006 added the additional element that prior denied and then re-opened claims, under the VCAA, must have a clear statement to inform the veteran or widow of the “unique character of evidence” that is needed for their specific claim".

They stated in my letter of increase that I was only awarded 50%, because I did not return to them the Medical Release of Information and TDIU that they CLAIM was sent to me. They cannot claim that they did not know of my address and phone number, since I had no problems receiving notice and phone calls for the C&P that they had scheduled.

This brings up an interesting question - What does someone do to correct problems with the c-file? As far as I can tell, there is the possibility of missing medical records, missing reports, having someone else's records mixed in with yours, information blacked out, etc... Hopefully, I will not find out that I am dead. B)

[Berta]

Thank you for the responses to my question.

Berta, I admit I had to look up what VCAA (Veterans Claims Assistance Act)was and I have never seen one. So it goes to follow, I never received anything from the Dingess-Hartman decision that the "VA must tell the veteran how they will rate the disability per the Schedule of Ratings and also how they will determine the earliest effective date if the claim succeeds" or the Kent decision, "another important case decided by the CAVC in 2006 added the additional element that prior denied and then re-opened claims, under the VCAA, must have a clear statement to inform the veteran or widow of the "unique character of evidence" that is needed for their specific claim".

They stated in my letter of increase that I was only awarded 50%, because I did not return to them the Medical Release of Information and TDIU that they CLAIM was sent to me. They cannot claim that they did not know of my address and phone number, since I had no problems receiving notice and phone calls for the C&P that they had scheduled.

This brings up an interesting question - What does someone do to correct problems with the c-file? As far as I can tell, there is the possibility of missing medical records, missing reports, having someone else's records mixed in with yours, information blacked out, etc... Hopefully, I will not find out that I am dead. B)

If they failed to send you a VCAA letter-they have committed a legal error to your detriment.

Dingess Hartman isnt that serious.They violate that all the time.

Have your SO or rep (or ypurself)ask them to call a clear and unmistakable error on themselves if you have never received the VCAA letter.

"What does someone do to correct problems with the c-file? As far as I can tell, there is the possibility of missing medical records, missing reports, having someone else's records mixed in with yours, information blacked out, etc... Hopefully, I will not find out that I am dead. "

Check what your rep has copies of and what you have copies of and if anything is missing from your C file- send them a charge that they have misplaced, lost, or destroyed your evidence. Use the VA Document Tampering Fast Letter here at hadit or ask your rep for copy of it.

Or it is at VA Watchdog- there is info here as well as at VA Watchdog as to how to prepare a letter of this nature.

Make sure you copy and send them any proof of mailing receipts you have too.

If I were you I would send them the TDIU form myself- I have posted it here many times-

and I believe the authorization form they should have sent to you can be found at the VA web site.

Here is the TDIU form again.

:D

TDIU_form.pdf

Edited April 6, 2009 by Berta

[john999]

If you have some old original ratings go back and look at them. The longer back in time you go the worse the quality of ratings. My original rating has serious errors in it according to my lawyer which reach the level of CUE. I found this out 30 years later by looking at my C-File. Ratings in the 40's, 50's,60's and 70's are just awful. They may just be a page and tend to ignore evidence the veteran supplied from private doctors. They did not even do C&P exams, but relied on military records or VA records entirely.

[Stretch]

I am with jbasser. You need to get a copy of the c-file. There are many things that I did not understand in my c-file. I didn't know what WBC in my medical records. Berta, had told me that this WBC was white blood cell count. It took me quite a lot of investigation to understand the importance of some things that were in my c-file. My congressman's rep. help me understand things that were difficult to believe.

At a quick glance you can see if everything that you have sent is there, but if it is a large c-file it may too over whelming to study in a small time frame.

[halos2]

Berta...Please explain what the VCAA letter entails.

If they failed to send you a VCAA letter-they have committed a legal error to your detriment.

Dingess Hartman isnt that serious.They violate that all the time.

Have your SO or rep (or ypurself)ask them to call a clear and unmistakable error on themselves if you have never received the VCAA letter.

"What does someone do to correct problems with the c-file? As far as I can tell, there is the possibility of missing medical records, missing reports, having someone else's records mixed in with yours, information blacked out, etc... Hopefully, I will not find out that I am dead. "

Check what your rep has copies of and what you have copies of and if anything is missing from your C file- send them a charge that they have misplaced, lost, or destroyed your evidence. Use the VA Document Tampering Fast Letter here at hadit or ask your rep for copy of it.

Or it is at VA Watchdog- there is info here as well as at VA Watchdog as to how to prepare a letter of this nature.

Make sure you copy and send them any proof of mailing receipts you have too.

If I were you I would send them the TDIU form myself- I have posted it here many times-

and I believe the authorization form they should have sent to you can be found at the VA web site.

Here is the TDIU form again.

;)

[Berta]

The Veterans CLaims Assistance Act of 2000 was suppose to enhance VA's Duty to Assist by telling us exactly what evidence they need ,in order to award a claim.

"The Veterans Claims Assistance Act of 2000 (VCAA)

The VCAA, codified in part at 38 U.S.C.A. §§ 5103, 5103A, and

implemented in part at 38 C.F.R. § 3.159, amended VA's duties

to notify and to assist a claimant in developing information

and evidence necessary to substantiate a claim.

Duty to Notify

Under 38 U.S.C.A. § 5103(a), VA must notify the claimant of

the information and evidence not of record that is necessary

to substantiate a claim, which information and evidence VA

will obtain, and which information and evidence the claimant

is expected to provide.

Also, the VCAA notice requirements apply to all five elements

of a service connection claim. The five elements are: (1)

veteran status; (2) existence of a disability; (3) a

connection between the veteran's service and the disability;

(4) degree of disability; and (5) effective date of the

disability. Dingess v. Nicholson, 19 Vet. App. 473, 484-486

(2006).

The VCAA notice must be provided to a claimant before the

initial unfavorable adjudication by the RO.

Pelegrini v. Principi, 18 Vet. App. 112, 119-120 (2004)."

The VCAA letter also must come with a Response form and list this form as an enclosure. Also the GPO printed tens of thousands of pamphlets explaining the VCAA in more detail for enclosure with the actual letter and response form but the VA has NEVER sent them out with the VCAA letter as they dont really want us to know what the VCAA is.

If a VCAA notice is illegal-that is deficient to the veteran's detriment- by failing to tell them what evidence the VA needs (this must be within an underlined bold print statement in their letter)

or if the VA fails to enclose the respond form (which they can then tell the vet they failed to respond to what the vet didnt get-and thereby VA can deny the claim)

these are errors that are prejudicial to the vet or widow and a good Service rep or vet rep should challenge this as well as the vet or widow.Right away.

The VA continues to send out deficient VCAA notices and these have caused thousands of remands at the BVA web site.And added again mor time to the veteran's claims.

VA took what was perfect (the VCA Act itself) and turned it into a scam to our detriment.

Violations of the VCAA as the BVA web site reveals are the biggest cause of the backlog.