Adding Needed Information

[Guest elizabeth]

THE LETTER MUST BE NOTARIZEDHI; my name is ELIZABETH I started the topic of how to get a lawyer; there has been remarks about me by WINGS stating i am mental and IMPAIRED I can assure you i am not ; now to get on to this topic anyone can hire a lawyer from the first day you file a claim YOU need a person to hire that lawyer for you under va law YOU CANNOT hire a lawyer yourself. this is how it works you get a brother or however hire a lawyer this person must sign a statment stating you are no paying them to do this for you the person signs as well they are paying the lawyer with their own money no you have a lawyer va cannot do anything for you broke no law THIS IS A FREE COUNTRY NO LAW STATES HOW I CAN SPEND MY MONEY IF I WANT TO HIRE A LAWYER FOR ANYONE I CAN I AM PAYING FOR IT I WILL ALSO CHOSE HOW I SPEND IT . new topic EVIDENCE UNDER VA LAW YOU CAN GRT ANYONE TO WRITE A LETTER MOTHER FRIEND WHO EVER CAN WRITH LIKE I REMENBER JOHN WHEN HE CAN BACK FROM SERVICE WITH A BROKEN LEG . THIS COULD BE 50 YEARS AGO VA UNDER LAW MUST ACCEPT THIS EVIDENCE FOR YOUR CLAIM THE LETTER CAN ONLY STATE OF KNOWLEDGE OF MEDICAL. VA WILL NOT ACCEPT ANY MEDICAL. STATMENTS JUST KNOWLEDGE REMENBER LETTER MUST BE TYPED AND NOTARIZED WINGS IF YOU THE WEB PAGE THIS CAME FROM I WILL TELL YOU . elizabeth

[Wings]

Elizabeth, I ASKED if you suffered a mental impairment. That's a fair question at a disabled vets forum. I have a mental disorder and so do a lot of vets that come here for help.

If someone other than yourself hires an attorney to represent you, Title 38 sets a dollar limit on attorney fees at the VARO level. Most attorney's will not work for $10.00 - - or some other low ball amount.

It would be helpful if you would back up your statements with facts and law. ~Wings

[Wings]

CRAIG-GRAHAM LEGISLATION SEEKS TO REPEAL CIVIL WAR ERA PROHIBITION ON LAWYERS

http://veterans.senate.gov/index.cfm?FuseA...Releases&id=607

May 4, 2006

(Washington, DC) A bill which would allow veterans to hire lawyers to represent them in their efforts to obtain federal benefits from the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs has been introduced by U.S. Senators Larry Craig (R-Idaho) and Lindsey Graham (R-South Carolina).

The legislation (S. 2694 - the Veterans’ Choice of Representation Act of 2006), if enacted, would repeal restrictions flowing from a policy born nearly 150 years ago when attending law school was not required to become a lawyer and many practicing law were considered ill trained and unscrupulous.

[Wings]

May 04, 2006

Bill would allow higher fees for lawyers who help veterans

By Rick Maze

Army Times staff writer

http://www.armytimes.com/story.php?f=1-292925-1751007.php

The chairman of the Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee says it is time to drop a Civil War-era rule that prohibits lawyers from being paid more than $10 to help veterans with benefits claims.

Other lawmakers have made similar attempts over the years, but the May 4 announcement by Sen. Larry Craig, R-Idaho, that he was introducing a bill to drop the prohibition marked the first time a veterans’ affairs committee chairman supported the proposal.

Under current law, lawyers may help veterans but cannot be paid more than $10 as long as a claim is handled administratively. Only after a benefit decision is appealed to court, which can take three to five years from when the initial claim was filed, can an attorney be paid higher.

Monday, May 8, 2006

Lawmakers: Veterans need help with benefits maze

Bill would end Civil War-era ban on hiring lawyers for claims

http://www.cnn.com/2006/LAW/05/08/veterans...s.ap/index.html

WASHINGTON (AP) -- Soldiers who survived the Civil War often fared less well with dishonest lawyers who cheated them out of pension money. Congress is now trying to do something about the backlash, lasting 140 years, that has barred veterans from hiring attorneys to help them with benefit claims.

[timetowinarace]

People are very confused about this proccess because it isn't utilized much.

You are all partially right.

To my knowledge, the $10 cap has not been removed. However, it is my understanding that this cap applies the the Veteran and not a disinterested third party.

Further, legally my brother (or any direct relative or any person in my household) cannot be a DISINTERESTED third party. That is why this proccess is not widely used. In essence it must be an almost perfect stranger to be completely legal. This has been the arguement to do away with the third party system because many Veterans are using a third party that is obviously close to the Veteran and could be paid back through the years with "gifts" instead of direct payment. Just recently WalMart hired an attorney to represent one of their employees in the VA claims proccess. This is legal because Walmart is an organization that will receive nothing but a good name for helping this person.

I posted the Law allready. Please read it before continuing. It may be possible for a third party to hire an attorney for a veteran but it's not that easy for veterans to find a third party that wants to donate thousands of dollars that cannot be replaced.

I have a cognative disorder. I am not offended by the topic any more than any other disability. I am more offended to hear that someone thinks that having my disability is less acceptable than say a physical handicap.

Time

[Berta]

NO- MAJOR Correction---

It is the men and women here, disabled by their service, who are NUMBER #1-

I never forget that-I am a civilian-

I am sure not the only person here who has succeeded in their claims - plenty of these vets have-you just joined here-you dont realize that. Every one of them regardless of their claim status is Number # 1 in my book.

I consider these vets here to have vastly more VA law knowledge than most lawyers do- unless they are Alex or the experienced lawyers who represent vets at the BVA and CAVC.

I dont think anyone is here just to somehow prove that they are right on something-

Our purpose is to respectfully help each other to get our claims resolved within the legal and medical criteria of VA regs.

[Tbird]

Amen Berta - couldn't have said it better myself!