7 Things About Veterans Disability Law You'll Kick Yourself For Not Knowing

Veterans Disability Lawyers

A veteran disability lawyer will guide you through the entire process of claiming. From gathering medical and service evidence to submitting an appeal of a denied claim.

Choose a veterans disability attorney that is solely handling these cases and knows the VA's system inside out. This will ensure that your case receives the attention it deserves.

Proving Service Connection

The VA will only offer disability benefits if it is proved that your condition is directly related to your military service. This is referred to as a linkage. You can use a variety of evidence to prove this connection. This includes medical records, independent health assessments (IME) or a an nexus letter from your current health care providers (especially in the case of mental health conditions). Sometimes, veterans disability lawsuit suffer from medically-determinable disabilities, but are not able to be connected because of missing or insufficient military treatment records. These cases require the help of experienced New York disability attorneys who are able to present an entire case and submit evidence backed by impartial experts.

It is easier to prove an immediate connection with your service to injuries or illnesses that you sustained while in the military. For instance, if suffered head injuries during your time in service and you are suffering headaches and concussions there is a strong connection between those events and your current condition.

It is harder to get service-connected if you had an existing condition that got worse during your military service. To prove that your time in the military caused or aggravated a pre-existing condition, you will need to provide medical evidence from a professional that is "clear and undeniable".

Appealing a Denial

The VA will review your case after you have submitted your application and provided medical proof. The VA usually issues an opinion either approving or denial of benefits. If the decision isn't favorable, the veteran is given a year to file a complaint. A veterans disability attorney can assist the claimant through the three review options - either a supplemental claim or a more advanced review, or an direct appeal before the Board of Veterans' Appeals.

When selecting when choosing a New York veterans disability lawyer, be sure to consider whether they have a good understanding of your military experience and military's culture. This can make the process more enjoyable and less requiring you to describe your experiences and situations in plain language.

You need a firm that will be working on your case throughout the lengthy appeals procedure. Beware of companies that will only assist you in the initial stages of your claim and then disappear.

An experienced New York Veterans Disability Attorney (Arikkeu.Com) can assist you in all stages of your claim and appeals, including the appeals procedure. They can help you submit additional medical evidence or request a formal hearing, and represent you at any Board meetings to ensure your case is dealt with fairly. They can also assist you in obtaining you benefits, such as monetary compensations, aid and education benefits, attendance benefits, or even unemployment.

Earning a higher rating

It may happen that your disability gets worse or your symptoms get more severe. It is logical in this case to request an increase in rating. A veteran disability lawyer can assist you with this process and assist you to gather evidence to support your claim.

It's not common for the VA to make mistakes that result in an lower disability rating than you're entitled to. In the event that they fail to notice an injury or miss a condition that could be combined with other disabilities to earn an increase in rating, it's worth having an expert review your records to spot any mistakes.

Even the fact that it's been more a year since your initial rating decision, you still can file a higher-level review or supplemental claim. This involves a thorough review of your file, and could result in changes to your effective date or an updated rating that is more accurate to what you really feel.

It's also worth seeking an additional claim or a higher-level review if you're entitled to a disability grade of 100 percent or higher. A disability lawyer can help create a compelling case for this rating which is reserved for the most debilitating of disabilities. A mental illness like this one, for instance, may allow you to receive a 100 percent disability rating because it could affect your job or cause frequent hospitalizations that don't normally trigger this level of a cardiovascular problem or any other medical condition.

Assistance with the Appeals Process

Contrary to what some may think the denial of an appeal for disability by the VA is not the end of a person's chances to recover benefits. Former military personnel have a year to appeal an outcome that is not favorable.

An experienced veterans disability attorney can assist a veteran in determining which of the current three appeals options is the best option for his situation. They can also assist an individual vet put the evidence needed to convince a higher level reviewer that their previous decision was wrong. They can even provide veterans with a formal hearing before a Veterans Law Judge.

A New York veteran disability lawyer can give you the personalized attention you require for your claim. They also have a wealth of experience in dealing with VA disability claims and understand the rules and procedures from top to bottom. In addition, some attorneys are veterans themselves, which means that they understand the issues disabled veterans have to face. This creates a unique type of empathy, which can improve the outcomes of a veterans disability case.

Sullivan & Kehoe can review your VA disability claim for no cost to determine if we can assist you. Call us today to arrange your free evaluation.