tukwila Veterans disability law firm Disability Lawyers

A veteran disability lawyer can help you through the entire claims process. From gathering medical and service evidence to filing an appeal against a denied claim.

Choose a veteran disability lawyer who is specialized in these kinds of cases and is acquainted with the VA system. This will ensure that your case receives the care it deserves.

Proving Service Connection

The VA will only provide disability benefits only if you prove that the condition you have is related to your military service. This is known as a nexus. You can make use of various types of evidence to prove the connection. These include medical records, independent health examinations (IME) or a an nexus letter from your current health care providers (especially in the cases of mental health issues). Sometimes veterans have medically determinable disabilities but cannot get service connected because of missing or insufficient military treatment records. These cases require the assistance of experienced New York disability lawyers who know how to make an accurate claim and submit evidence that is confirmed by independent experts.

It is easier to prove the direct connection between your service and illnesses or injuries that occurred while in the military. For instance, if received a head injury during service and now suffer headaches and concussions, there is a strong connection between the two events and your current health condition.

However, it is harder to get connected if you have a pre-existing medical condition that worsened while in the military. To prove that your military service worsened or aggravated an existing illness, you must supply expert medical evidence that reaches the level of "clear and unmistakable" evidence.

Appealing a Denied Application

After submitting an application and providing medical evidence The VA will review the case. The VA usually issues an approval or denial of benefits. If the decision isn't favorable, the veteran has a year to submit a notice of disagreement. A veteran's disability attorney can assist the claimant through the three decision review options - the supplemental claim, or a higher-level review, or an direct appeal to the Board of sweetwater veterans disability lawyer' Appeals.

Consider whether the lawyer understands your military experiences as well as the traditions of the armed forces when selecting a New York veterans' disability lawyer. This can make the process more enjoyable and less demanding for you to talk about your experiences and situations in layman's terms.

You should also choose a firm who will remain on your case for the duration of the appeals process over a period of years. Beware of firms that assist you with the initial stages of your claim, and then go away.

A seasoned New York veterans disability attorney will assist you with every stage of your claim and appeals, including the appeals procedure. They can assist you in submitting additional medical evidence and request a formal hearing and represent you at any Board meetings to ensure that your case is dealt with fairly. They can also assist in obtaining you benefits such as monetary compensations, aid and attendance benefits, educational benefits, or unemployability.

How to get a higher rating

It may happen that your disability becomes worse or your symptoms become more severe. It is logical in this situation to ask for an increase in your rating. A veteran disability lawyer can help you in this process and help you collect evidence to support your claim.

It's not uncommon for the VA to make mistakes that lead to an under-reported disability rating than you're entitled to. Whether they accidentally miss an injury that you suffer from or overlook a problem that could be a combination of other disabilities in order to get a higher rating it's important to have a professional look over your records to find any errors.

Even the fact that it's been more one year since your initial rating decision, you still can file an additional review or claim. This involves a thorough review of your file and can result in the change of your effective date or an entirely new rating that's more in line with how you really feel.

It's also worth pursuing an additional claim or higher-level review if you're arguing that you're entitled to a disability rate of 100 percent or more. A disability lawyer can help you build a strong case for this rating, which is reserved only for the most debilitating of disabilities. For instance mental health issues could qualify you for a 100% disability rating due to the fact that it causes significant disruption to your work or frequent periods of hospitalization that do not typically trigger this kind of a rating for a cardiovascular disease or other medical issue.

Assistance with the Appeals Process

Contrary to what many believe, the fact that a VA denial of disability benefits doesn't mean that an individual is not eligible for benefits. Former service members have one year to appeal an outcome that is not favorable.

An experienced veteran disability attorney can assist a vet in determining which of the current three appeals options would be best for his particular case. They can also help veterans gather all the evidence required to convince a higher-level reviewer that their previous decision was not right. They may also give a veteran a more formal hearing in before an Veterans Law judge.

The benefit of having a New York veteran disability attorney handle your appeal is that they'll give you the attention and care that your claim requires. They also have a wealth of experience handling VA disability claims, and they understand the rules and procedure inside out. Some attorneys are veterans, and therefore are aware of the difficulties faced by disabled veterans. This can create a special type of empathy which can improve the outcome of an issue involving veterans' disability.

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