10 Misconceptions Your Boss Has Regarding Veterans Disability Law

Veterans Disability Lawyers

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

Choose a veterans disability attorney who is specialized in handling these cases and knows the VA system from head to toe. This will ensure that your case receives the attention it deserves.

Proving Service Connection

The VA will only offer disability benefits if it's proven that your condition is linked to your military experience. This is referred to as a connection. There are many types of evidence to prove the connection. This includes medical records, independent health examinations (IME) or a the nexus letters from current healthcare providers (especially in the case of mental health problems). There are occasions when veterans have medically determined disabilities, but they are not able to be service connected because of insufficient or missing documents. These cases require the assistance of skilled New York disability attorneys who are able to present an entire claim as well as submit evidence backed by unbiased experts.

It is simpler to establish a direct service connection if injuries or illnesses occurred during your time in the military. For example, if you were hit in the head during service and now suffer headaches and concussions there is a direct link between the events that led to your current condition.

However, it's more difficult to get connected if you suffer from a pre-existing medical condition that became worse during your time in the military. To show that your time in service aggravated or worsened a pre-existing health condition, you'll have to provide medical evidence from a professional that is "clear and undeniable".

Appealing a Denied Application

The VA will review your case after you have submitted your application and provided medical evidence. It usually issues a decision that either approves or denies benefits. If the decision is not favorable the veteran has one year to file a Notice of Disparagement. A veterans disability attorney can help the claimant navigate 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 deciding on a New York veterans disability lawyer Be sure to think about whether they are familiar with your military experiences and the traditions of the armed forces. This will make it easier for you to understand and reduce the necessity to explain your circumstances and experiences in layman's terms.

You want a company that will handle your case through the lengthy appeals procedure. Beware of firms who only assist you in the initial stages of your claim, and then disappear.

A seasoned New York veterans disability attorney can help you through all phases of your claim and appeals, including the appeals procedure. They can help you submit additional medical evidence, request a formal hearing and represent you at any Board meetings to ensure your case is treated fairly. They can also assist you in obtaining you benefits, such as financial compensations, aid and attendance benefits, education benefits, or unemployability.

Getting a Higher Rating

There may come a time where your disability gets more severe or your symptoms become broader or more challenging. It makes sense in this scenario to ask for an increase in your rating. A lawyer for veterans' disability can assist you in this process, and they can assist you in locating evidence to back your request.

It's not uncommon for the VA to make mistakes that lead to an lower disability rating than you're entitled. It's worth getting an expert to look over your records for any errors. They may have overlooked an injury or omitted a problem which could be added to another condition to get an increase in rating.

You are still able to submit a higher-level claim or review if you have been evaluated for more than a calendar year. This could include a thorough review of your entire file, which can result in changes to the effective date of your claim and a new rating more accurate to your personal feelings.

It's also worth looking into an additional claim or a higher-level review if you are entitled to a disability rating of 100 percent or more. A disability lawyer can help you create an argument that supports this type of rating, which is reserved for extremely severe disabilities. A mental health problem like this one, for instance, may allow you to receive a 100 percentage disability rating since it can interfere with employment or trigger frequent hospitalizations that are not typically triggering this level of severity for a heart problem or any other medical condition.

Assistance with the Appeals Process

Contrary to what many people think the denial of claims for disability by the VA isn't the end of an individual's chance to collect benefits. In fact, a former veteran is given one year from the date their local veterans hospital or office sends them a negative decision to appeal.

An experienced veterans disability attorney, Continued, can assist a veteran in determining which of the current three pathways for appeal would be the most appropriate for his particular case. They can also assist veterans gather the evidence they need to convince a higher-level reviewer that the previous decision was incorrect. They can give a veteran an additional formal hearing before a Veterans Law judge.

The greatest benefit of having an New York veteran disability attorney handle your appeal is that they are able to provide the personalized attention your claim requires. They also have extensive experience handling VA disability claims and understand the rules and procedures from top to bottom. Additionally, some lawyers are veterans themselves, which means they understand the issues disabled veterans have to face. This creates a unique type of empathy that can enhance the outcome of a case involving a disabled veteran.

The team at Sullivan &Kehoe of highly-trained lawyers can review your VA disability claims for no cost to determine if we can assist you. Call us today to schedule your free assessment.