Thanks to KARK reporter Marci Manley for picking up this story about problems at the Little Rock VA Regional Office.

Click here to see  Marci’s report

For those of us that represent Veterans before this Regional Office, we know all too well that the stories told by Veterans in this TV news report are more “the rule” than the “exception”.

While, in my opinion, the Little Rock Regional Office is not the worst VA Regional Office, it has more than its share of problems.  Chief among these are its delays….long and unacceptable waits for Veterans in need of help.

Let me tell you about a couple experiences of clients of mine.

Client #1:  Vietnam Veteran files his claim around 2002.  After 6 years of fighting the Little Rock VA Regional Office, he hired the Attig Law Firm in November 2008.  By July 2009, I convinced the VA to service-connect his PTSD – which was the result of his combat experiences in Vietnam.  The irony is that the VA had all the information that I used to convince them to grant the claim in the Veteran’s Claims file for over 6 years!   We are still fighting for this Veteran at the Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims in Washington.  Even with a VA Doctor opinion stating that another medical condition was caused by his exposure to Agent Orange in Vietnam, the VA still refuses to grant his claim.

Client #2.  Our client is the Veteran’s surviving spouse.  Her husband, a Vietnam Veteran, filed his claim in 2001.  After years of unsuccessfully fighting the VA for benefits, he died a couple years ago.  The VA Regional Office and the BVA erred so many times that it was remanded back to the VA Regional Office by both the BVA (2008) and the Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims (2006).  Now, his wife has picked up the fight.  The case is at the Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims, currently, and we are attempting to get the VA General Counsel to agree to remand the case again to the VA Regional Office in Little Rock to fix their mistakes.

Client #3.  Our client filed his claims in 2002. After 6 years of fighting the VA Regional Office in Little Rock, he hired the Attig Law Firm.  We came on board while the case was at the Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims, and immediately got the case sent back to the BVA and the VA Regional Office to correct errors. As a result of our work, the Veteran received over $100,000 in past-due benefits for his claim.  On top of that, because of our work, in 2011, the Veteran received TDIU retroactive to 2002 – because the Little Rock VA Regional Office failed to properly decide his claim 9 years earlier!

The VA Regional Office in Little Rock will delay and delay and delay if given the chance.

While my Firm can’t help every Veteran that files a claim in  Arkansas, but there are a lot of attorneys that can help the Arkansas Veterans that we can’t.  Contact us to see if we can help with your VA disability benefits claim in Arkansas, or if we can get you a referral to another Veterans disability benefits attorney.

It is very important that we note that each and every Veteran’s claim is different. Just because we were able to secure substantial past-due benefits for one Veteran does not mean or imply that we will be able to do so for you.   In some cases, we may not be able to secure you any financial compensation due to the facts of your particular case.

It is best to consult with a lawyer familiar with VA Disability claims and benefits or a Veterans Service Organization to examine your particular case.  If you would like to discuss your VA claim with a lawyer who handles VA Benefits and Disability Appeals in Texas, Arkansas, Oklahoma, and all around the nation, contact the Attig Law Firm, PLLC, for a free consultation with a VA Benefits attorney.

The Attig Law Firm, PLLC, and VA benefits attorney Chris Attig, represents military Veterans in Texas, Arkansas, Oklahoma (as well as all around the nation) before the VA Regional Office, the Board of Veterans Appeals (BVA) and the Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims (CAVC) in claims for disability compensation from the Department of Veterans Affairs.