Tuesday, July 8, 2008

National Veterans Legal Services Program (NVLSP)


From: Lawyers Serving Warriors
Lawyers Serving Warriors: A project of the National Veterans Legal Services Program (NVLSP) providing free legal representation in disability, discharge and veterans benefits cases to service members and veterans who served in Operation Iraqi Freedom (OIF) or Operation Enduring Freedom (OEF).

While combat operations continue in Iraq and Afghanistan, countless American troops and veterans are returning to a crisis at home: U.S. military personnel home from the warzone find themselves left to fight, often without legal representation, for the benefits they have so honorably earned while defending our nation. Lawyers Serving Warriors provides free legal representation, through a network of law firms and corporate law departments, for troops and veterans navigating government agencies in an effort to receive disability benefits, proper military discharges and other benefits due them.

What We Do

Through a network of volunteer attorneys, Lawyers Serving Warriors provides free legal services to U.S. Military personnel and veterans who have served in OIF or OEF in the following situations:

Referred to the physical disability evaluation system. The physical disability evaluation system determines a service member’s eligibility for a disability severance or retirement. Assistance of an attorney in the process can be critical to ensuring the right determination and benefits. Service members who have been referred to the physical disability evaluation system can receive free legal representation through Lawyers Serving Warriors, including assistance with Medical Evaluation Boards (MEBs) and Physical Evaluation Boards (PEBs).

Facing an involuntary administrative separation. The type of discharge and discharge characterization a service member receives has a dramatic impact on benefits. Some service members with disabilities, such as Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) and Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI), have been inappropriately recommended for involuntary separation. Lawyers Serving Warriors will provide service members who are being inappropriately involuntarily separated because of a disability with free legal representation.

Received an inappropriate discharge or discharge characterization. A less than Honorable discharge characterization or an inappropriate discharge can result in a veteran receiving no benefits or fewer benefits than he or she deserves. Veterans with disabilities, such as Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) and Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI), who received an inappropriate discharge or discharge characterization, can receive free legal representation through Lawyers Serving Warriors.

Filed a claim with the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) for disability compensation. Veterans who have claims for VA disability compensation can receive free legal representation in preparing the claim and appealing an inappropriate denial of benefits from Lawyers Serving Warriors.

Claim under the Traumatic Injury Insurance Under the Servicemembers Group Life Insurance (TSGLI). TSGLI provides a onetime lump sum payment to qualified U.S. military personnel who have suffered a traumatic injury caused by a traumatic event. Lawyers Serving Warriors will provide representation to qualified military personnel who have been denied or have difficulties with a claim under TSGLI.

Who We Are

Lawyers Serving Warriors has recruited hundreds of lawyers from law firms and corporate law departments throughout the country. In addition to their legal expertise, our attorneys have also been provided training on laws governing the military and veterans’ disability benefits programs so they are prepared and qualified to handle such cases. Lawyers Serving Warriors also provides each volunteer lawyer with a mentor experienced in military and veterans law, further ensuring that every service member and veteran receives top notch legal representation.

Lawyers Serving Warriors is a project of the National Veterans Legal Services Program (NVLSP) an independent, nonprofit veterans service organization dedicated to ensuring that the U.S. government honors its commitment to our active duty personnel and veterans by providing them the federal benefits they have earned though their service to our country. The project is operated in cooperation with the Pro Bono Institute, and veterans service organizations including The American Legion and the Military Order of the Purple Heart.

Contact Us
To get help from the Lawyers Serving Warriors project at the National Veterans Legal Services Program, OEF/OIF veterans should call 202.265.8305 and go to ext. 152.

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

Veterans Village
5388 W 40 Ave
Wheat Ridge CO 80212-7230
303 238 1456
www.veteranschamberofcommerce.org

Please help us identify the needed mediation vis Disabled Veteran owned businesses and the lack of compliance, by the government, when they are low bidder, vis contracts
For The War Widows

Mary Murphy, former VA/Prison Chaplain
mmurphy@veteranschamberofcommerce.org

Anonymous said...

The va is pushing thru claims for new and oef/off vets. Why isn't there something like this to help those of us who were discharges before anyone really cared and now have to fight and wait years for what we mshould have gotten 20 years ago??? No one seems to care unless you are just out of the service. The Vietnam vets were forgotten and so were the vets in between wars. Are they any less important? No, but we must fight much harder than is fair.....

Anonymous said...

It would be so nice if there were organizations to help the vets who were forgotten because they served between conflicts. No one seems to care, including the VA....our claims take years and new vets who were off or oef are getting approved in months. Some of us were never advised and never knew what we were entitled to, now we wait years to get denied and have to appeal, when new vets are getting approved for the same or lesser disabilities in months? How is this fair. There are hundreds of organizations to help if you are a newer vet, but we have forgotten another group of veterans who deserve help and are treating them as bad as our nation did Vietnam vets!