Veterans Disability Lawyers

A veteran disability lawyer will guide you through the entire process of claiming. From collecting medical and service proof to filing an appeal of a claim that has been denied.

Choose a veterans disability attorney who focuses their practice on dealing with these cases and who is familiar with the VA's system inside and out. This will ensure that your case is given the attention it deserves.

Proving Service Connection

The VA will only award disability benefits if it can be established that your condition is directly related to your military service. This is referred to as a relationship. There are many types of evidence to prove the connection. This includes medical records, independent health exams (IME) or a an nexus letter from your current healthcare providers (especially in the cases of mental health issues). There are times that veterans disability law firms suffer from medically-determined disabilities, but are unable to be considered to be service-connected due the absence of or insufficient records. These cases require the assistance of experienced New York disability attorneys who are skilled at presenting an entire claim as well as submit evidence backed by unbiased experts.

It is simpler to prove an immediate connection with your service to illnesses or injuries that occurred while you were in the military. For instance, if received a head injury while serving and are now suffering from concussions and headaches, there is a direct link between those events and your current condition.

However, it is harder to get connected if you have a pre-existing medical condition that grew worse during your time in the military. To show that your time in service caused or aggravated a pre-existing condition, you'll need to provide expert medical evidence that is "clear and undisputed".

Appealing an Denial

After filing an application and providing medical evidence, the VA will review the application. It usually issues a ruling that either approves or denies benefits. If the decision is not in favor the veteran is given one year to file a Notice of Disparagement. A veterans disability attorney can assist the claimant through the three review options - an additional claim or a higher-level review, or an direct appeal to the Board of Veterans' Appeals.

Make sure the lawyer is knowledgeable of your military experience as well as the military's culture when selecting the New York veterans' disability lawyer. This can make things easier for you and decrease the requirement to explain your situation and experiences in layman's.

You need a firm that will take on your case through the lengthy appeals process. Be wary of firms that only assist you with the initial stages of your case, and then disappear.

An experienced New York veterans disability attorney will assist you with every stage of your claim including the appeals process. They can help you submit additional medical evidence, request a formal hearing and represent you at any Board meetings to ensure your case is handled fairly. They can also help win you benefits such as assistance, monetary compensations and education benefits, attendance benefits, or unemployment.

How can I get a better rating

There could be a point when your disability becomes more serious, or your symptoms get more complicated or broad. In that situation it is sensible to ask for an increase in your rating. A veterans disability lawyer can assist you in this process, and can assist you in finding evidence to support your request.

It's not unusual for the VA to make mistakes that result in a lower disability rating than you're entitled. Whether they accidentally miss an injury you've suffered or ignore a condition that could be combined with other disabilities to get higher ratings It's worthwhile to have an expert look over your records to identify any errors.

Even the fact that it's been more one year since your initial rating decision, you still can file a higher-level review or supplemental claim. This includes a review of your entire file, which can result in changes to the effective date of your claim and a new rating that is more corresponding to your feelings.

It's also worth pursuing a supplemental claim or higher-level review if you're arguing that you're entitled to a disability rate of 100 percent or higher. A disability lawyer can help make a convincing case for this rating that is reserved for the most debilitating disabilities. A mental health problem for instance, might make you eligible for a 100 percentage disability rating since it could affect your job or result in frequent hospitalizations that don't normally trigger this level for veterans disability attorney a cardiovascular problem or any other medical condition.

Getting Help with the Appeals Process

Contrary to what many believe contrary to what many may think, a VA denial of disability benefits does not mean that an individual is not eligible for benefits. In fact, a former soldier has one year from the date their local veterans hospital or office mails them an unfavorable determination to file an appeal.

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

The benefit of having a New York veteran disability attorney handle your appeal is that they'll provide the personalized attention your claim demands. They are also likely to have extensive experience dealing with VA disability claims, and they know the rules and procedures inside and out. Some attorneys are veterans, and therefore are aware of the difficulties that disabled veterans face. This can lead to a particular kind of empathy that can help improve the outcome of the case of a disabled veteran.

The team at Sullivan &Kehoe of highly-trained lawyers can review your VA disability claim for free to determine if we are able to help you. Call us today to schedule your free evaluation.