For a Free Consultation with a VA Disability Lawyer Serving Florida, Call Chisholm Chisholm & Kilpatrick LTD at 800-544-9144. Our veterans advocates are standing by, ready to help you fight for the disability benefits you rightfully earned in service to our country.
A veteran (VA) disability lawyer serving Florida at Chisholm Chisholm & Kilpatrick LTD can help you navigate the vast complexities of the VA appeals process and build a strong and convincing case. More than 1.5 million veterans (nearly 10 percent of the state’s population).
How Do Our VA Benefits Appeals Lawyers Fight for Clients? 1 Medical Evidence. Our VA benefits appeal lawyers will gather all your medical evidence needed to prove mental and physical impairments. Our VA ... 2 Backpay. 3 Filing Appeals. 4 Effective Dates.
No. The Veterans Administration does not require you to hire a lawyer for your appeal. However, remember that the VA is also the one who denied your claim. We highly suggest you hire a VA Disability denial lawyers for your appeal because the entire appeal process is lengthy and very difficult.
Generally no, debt collectors can't take your Social Security or VA benefits directly out of your bank account or prepaid card. After a debt collector sues you for the debt and wins a judgment, it can get a court order for your bank or credit union to turn over money from your account or prepaid card.
To file an appeal with the VA Regional Office that denied you benefits, you will need to submit a Notice of Disagreement (NOD). The VA doesn't have an NOD form, so you can use Statement in Support of Claim form. You can find this form at www.va.gov/vaforms/.
Without representation, veterans have a roughly one in four chance of receiving benefits on appeal: 2017 - 24.42% of appeals were approved with no representative. 2018 - 27.22% of appeals were approved with no representative. 2019 - 26.18% of appeals were approved with no representative.
BVA Decision Issued: The average wait time for a Board decision is 248 days.
If you file a VA disability application and are denied or given a low rating, you have one year to appeal that decision. If you wait longer than a year, you can file a new application. If that application is also denied, you can appeal. There is no limit to how many times you can appeal different applications.
In order to appeal to the Court, a veteran or their attorney must be able to argue that the Board committed legal error in its decision. You have 120 days from the date of the Board's decision to appeal to the Court.
Unless you are filing a fully developed claim, or your appeal is so simple that the Board of Veterans' Appeals (BVA) can issue an award within 30 days, your initial claim can take anywhere from 9-15 months to process. The VA appeals process timeline for an informal claim is typically within 9-12 months.
12-18 monthsThe Veterans Benefits Administration usually takes 12-18 months to review new appeals and decide whether to grant some or all of the appeal. When you request a review from a Veterans Law Judge at the Board of Veterans' Appeals, it could take 5-7 years for you to get a decision.
While it is always desirable to have a claim be granted, a remand is not a bad thing. It means that the regional office made some sort of error in the rendering of their decision, or new evidence has come to light that warrants a reexamination of the claim.
When the BVA overturns a decision, the veteran will be granted their request for benefits. This is a final decision on the matter, and benefits may no longer be denied. Often the decision is a remand by the BVA.
Generally, you can expect to receive a VA rating decision within 30 business days of the Preparation for Decision phase. The “VA Claim Prep for Decision” phase is step #5 of 8 of the VA disability claim process. The three remaining steps are: Pending Decision Approval (average of 7-14 days)
What Happens After The Hearing? After the hearing, the judge will issue a decision. The judge may send your case back to your VA Regional Office (this is called a remand) to correct errors that may have been made. Or the judge may deny your appeal or may grant your benefits to you.
The VA frequently denies legitimate claims or awards an inadequate benefit amount because of mistakes made on application forms or because of the applicant’s failure to demonstrate the extent of their injuries.
A personal hearing is an informal hearing conducted by the decision review officer who will review your claim. A veterans’ disability attorney can help you determine if a personal hearing should be requested in your case.
Our Tampa attorneys have experience helping veterans who have the following injuries receive disability benefits from the VA: 1 Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder 2 Exposure to Toxic Chemicals 3 Back and Spinal Injuries 4 Gulf War Syndrome 5 Medical Conditions Caused by Exposure to Deplete Uranium 6 Traumatic Brain Injury 7 Amputations 8 Tropical Diseases, such as dysentery and malaria 9 Gunshot Wounds 10 Shrapnel Wounds from Improvised Explosive Devices 11 Knee, Leg, and Arm Injuries
Generally, the deadline for filing a Notice of Disagreement is one year from the mailing date of the letter that informs you of the denial of benefits.
Generally, a veteran must be at least, by quantifiable measures, 10% disabled by injuries that were incurred in or aggravated during active duty, training, or inactive duty training to qualify for benefits. A veteran may also qualify for VA benefits for post-service disabilities that are related to disabilities that occurred in service. If a veteran has dependents, an additional allowance may be added if his or her combined disability is rated 30% or greater.
If you suspect your claim has been improperly denied by the VA, a Tampa veterans’ disability attorney can review your medical condition and determine if an appeal should be filed.
Too often, the Department of Veterans Affairs wrongfully denies disability benefit claims for the men and women who served this country . Whether you are filing an initial claim, appealing a denied claim, or appealing an insufficient benefits award, our attorneys can help you through the difficult steps of a veteran's’ claim process.
Avard Law Offices, P.A. handles Veterans disability compensation and pension claims; aid and attendance claims to assist Vets and their families obtain nursing home and assisted living benefits; long-term care planning for Vets, claims caused by VA health care negligence at a VA hospital facility.
Avard Law Offices handles medical malpractice claims where the malpractice has occurred within a Veterans Hospital or Clinic. These claims include such things as traumatic brain injuries, surgical mishaps, failure to biopsy, and a variety of other types of negligence. In addition, we handle all types of Veterans Disability claims that go before the Board of Veterans Appeals and the U.S. Court of Veterans Appeals.
Carol Avard, Esq. is a member of NOVA (National Organization of Veterans’ Advocates) Carol Avard, Esq., Mark Zakhvatayev, Esq., Douglas Mohney, Esq. are all approved to take cases before the Court of Veterans’ Appeals. It’s no secret that the Veterans Administration has had problems for years.
Our VA benefits appeals lawyers help veterans get the monthly compensation they deserve. Here are a few reasons why you should talk to our VA benefits appeals lawyers:
If you recently received a denial or low rating from the Veterans Administration, you may have the option to appeal. You have one year to appeal your initial decision. The year begins the date the decision was made. If you have let your VA disability appeal period lapse, you can re-apply. That means you will need to submit another initial application and go through the application process again. This is a long route to getting your VA disability benefits, but at least there is still an avenue open.
The veteran or family member must receive a denial of VA benefits or a low-rating. When this happens remain calm, many veterans are denied benefits or rated too low. If you were denied or rated too low, it is now time to contact a lawyer.
If you are denied VA disability benefits, make sure you pay close attention to all the Veterans Administrations deadlines and complete all the paperwork. There are thousands of federal regulations that govern VA disability law and many veterans get confused.
Too many veterans lose their own cases because they make a small mistake. If you blow-past certain deadlines, your current claim is dead in the water and you’re going to have to apply again. The only way to speed up the VA benefits appeals process is to submit everything correctly and timely.
If you wish to appeal, you must now file a Form 9 to begin the appeal to the Board of Veterans Appeals (BVA). You must meet the time limits for filing a Form 9 or you forfeit your right to appeal. We highly suggest you contact a lawyer to handle your Form 9.
The Veterans Administration will send the Statement of the Case (SOC) to the veteran or their lawyer. This often takes a while; sometimes around 200 days. The SOC should be reviewed carefully for any mistakes.
Veterans’ Disability Benefits Denial Lawyer. Many veterans who suffer an injury or illness in defense of their country return home unable to work, which is a major reason why the VA maintains a disability benefits program. These VA benefits provide veterans monetary compensation in order to bring stability to veterans and their families.
A veterans’ disability benefits denial lawyer can help guide you in the right direction no matter what stage of the process you are currently navigating.
Various timelines for appeals may apply depending on whether your case is considered part of VA’s Legacy Appeal system or whether it is covered under the Appeals Modernization Act. VetLaw’s team can review your denial letter and provide you with more information on what category you fall under as well as how to pursue an appeal.
A current disability, a link or medical nexus between that disability and active duty service, and status as a veteran as defined by VA are all required in order to win your case. If VA believes you have not established any of these three things, you will receive a denial.
Whether your case is considered a Legacy Appeal or it falls under the Appeals Modernization Act, we highly encourage you to appeal your denial. Our experienced team of VA-accredited attorneys can assist you with this process and provide timely and crucial assistance. All denials must be in writing and provide a justification for that decision. Sometimes the justification provided by VA is short and confusing, and veterans may be left wondering what to do next.
All veterans who suffer from a current disability deserve the full amount of benefits available to them. Unfortunately, VA routinely denies these benefits, leaving veterans no choice but to either appeal that decision or give up on their claim. A veterans’ disability benefits denial lawyer can help interpret the agency’s decision, review your VA file, and determine the best path to take in order to pursue an appeal. Call today to schedule a free case review and consultation.