I guess I must be living in a hole in the ground or something, because I didn't even know this law existed. It's not a new law either. It's been in effect for around 140 years. It seems that after the Civil War, our benevolent and all-wise government passed a law denying veterans access to an attorney in their dealings with the Veteran's Administration. This ridiculous law has passed Supreme Court scrutiny, and is still in effect.
So it is OK for our government to send our soldiers through hell, possibly to be killed, maimed or psychologically injured, but it is not OK for a veteran to hire an attorney to help him deal with that same government's bureaucracy. That really sounds fair doesn't it? I had always thought that one of our most cherished and useful rights was the right to consult an attorney when the awesome weight of government was bearing down on us.
Fortunately, some of our legislators are trying to change this. Senator Larry Craig [R-Idaho] has introduced a bill in the Senate, and Rep. Lane Evans [D-Illinois] and Rep. Jeff Miller [R-Florida] have introduced bills in the House. All of these bills would allow a veteran to hire an attorney at any stage in their dealings with the VA.
Of course, the VA is opposed to these bills. Ronald Aument, Deputy Undersecretary for Benefits at the VA, says there is no evidence that veterans would get better results by hiring an attorney. Obviously, Mr. Aument has never had to deal with a government agency from a citizen's viewpoint. Sometimes an attorney is the only person that can get something done. Aument continues, "Further, VA would likely have to hire attorneys to work in its regional offices to respond to the legal pleadings filed by attorneys in support of their client's claims. However unintentional it would be, we predict the process would inevitably become more formal and brief-driven, to the point claimants may feel they must hire attorneys to establish entitlement to their benefits."
If that's the only arguments the VA has, then they'd be better served by backing off on this one. Veterans should have the right to consult an attorney anytime they feel the need. I don't know what chance these bills have of becoming law, but I hope they make it. The current situation is just wrong, and it must be set right.
I suggest you get a little more background on the VA claim situation.There are thousands of excellent VSO (Veteran Service Officers) in this country that get claims sucessfully processed by the VA - for free.
ReplyDeleteMost of the time that a claim fails, it is because the written medical evidence of a link between a current disability and injury/disease during the service is not there and cannot be found under any circumstance, regardless of the money thrown at a law firm.
There has always been a place for attorney's at a point in the appeal process, which is mainly where they are SOMETIMES needed.
What do you suppose would happen if the VA changed the rules to make attorneys want to represent more veterans? Would only those vets who wanted to buy their help get priority treatment?
The biggest problem with VA claims is a shortage of VA staff; slanting the table to favor the rich who pay for lawyers will force more veterans to give large percentages of their awards to the attorneys.
The VA claim system is not like tort litigation; do not make it into one.