Although a disabled veteran can turn to veterans services groups and claims agents for assistance in appealing a denial of benefits there is little doubt that using the services of anyone other than certified lawyers for disabled veterans puts the veteran at a distinct disadvantage. The laws, rules and regulations that govern VA disability claims are phenomenally complex and they are constantly changing.
The success rate is far better for those veterans with a lawyer:
A veteran that has hired a lawyer to represent his or her interests in their dealings with the BVA have the lowest denial of benefits rate, the rate is considerably lower than the average. Not only that, veterans that are represented during the appeals process are far more likely to be successful in winning the appeal.
When is it time to hire a lawyer?
The rules have recently been changed for the better. In the past a disabled veteran had to wait until the Board of Veterans Affairs actually made a final decision, now a veteran does not have to wait that long. The new ruling allows the veteran to engage the services of lawyers for disabled veterans once the appeals process has began which simply means; the affected veteran received notice of denial of claim and then filed a Notice of Disagreement.
Hiring a lawyer early in the appeals process allows the veteran and his lawyer to put together a well documented case to support the claim.
Statistically, it takes considerably longer for a self-represented claimant to get a favorable decision than it does when the claimant has a seasoned lawyer. The VA does not make it easy for the veteran, it can be a lengthy, grueling process and the VA can deny a claim at any time during the process for any number of reasons. Contact Jackson & MacNichol Law Offices at http://www.veteransbenefits.com/ for more details.