Attig Law Firm P.L.L.C.

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If you have questions about your claim for Veterans Benefits, contact a Veterans Benefits Attorney at the Attig Law Firm.

VETERANS - REQUEST A CONSULTATION BY FAX

One of the most important values of our Firm is that "Information is Power" - we want you, the Veteran, to have more power, whether you retain our Firm or not. When the VA considers your claim, they have volumes and volumes of cases, rule-books, institutional experience and unlimited legal counsel at their fingertips. What do you have?

The Attig Law Firm hopes to provide substantial information to Veterans seeking disability compensation benefits for their service-connected injuries or illnesses, both in our FAQ and in our Veterans Benefits Blog. If you have any suggestions how we could improve our website to help even the scales for the Veteran and to help you secure the benefits you, the Veteran, deserve, please don't hesitate to  This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .

It is important to note that this website and this Blog are not meant to be legal advice - they are meant to give you, the Veteran, information and education. Nothing can take the place of competent legal advice from a VA Benefits Lawyer or a Veterans' Service Organization .

If there are any questions not here that you would like answered, please feel free to This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .

1. What are the steps in the VA's Veterans Benefits Claim Process?

2. When can I hire an attorney to help me in my claim?

3. Why would I want to hire an attorney to help me in my claim?

4. Is there anything I need to know before I hire an attorney to represent me?

5. How much does it cost to hire an attorney for a Veterans' Benefits Claim?

6. How long does a claim for VA Benefits take?

7. What benefits can I receive from the VA?

8. I have been discharged from the military for years - can I still file a claim for benefits?

9. Do I have to be honorably discharged to receive benefits?

10. Does my medical condition or illness need to have happened while I was on military duty to get benefits?

11.  Are my VA Benefits taxed as income?

12. Does the VA have to help me in my claim for benefits?

13. What is the difference between having a VSO represent me and an attorney represent me?

What are the steps in the VA's Veterans Benefits Claim Process?

* Be sure to save copies of everything that the VA sends you or that you send the VA.  We recommend that whenever you send anything to the VA about your claim, send it via Certified Mail Return Receipt Requested.  It costs a few extra dollars, but is worth the cost to prove the VA received a document they may later claim they didn't receive (or, worse yet, that a VA employee shredded or destroyed).

A) The Original Claim. All claims for benefits start with an original application.

The easiest way to file an application is online - click here for a link in a new window to the VA's online application process. You can also submit a VA Benefits Application by Mail. Click here for a link to the Form.

In addition to "original claims", there are also remanded claims and reopened claims.  If you have questions about a Reopened or Remanded claim for Veterans Benefits, you should consider contacting a VA Benefits Lawyer to discuss your claim.

B) The VA Rating Decision. After receiving your application, the VA will begin to develop evidence that will support or deny your claim. This includes medical records (both in-service and post-service, VA medical records and private medical records), military service records, etc.  A claims representative will review your claim and the supporting evidence and issue a "Rating Decision".

If your claim is granted, the Rating Decision will tell you what claims were granted and what impairment rating was assigned to you, and the Effective Date of your benefits.  The VA often makes mistakes in determining the correct impairment rating; they also frequently assign the wrong "Effective Date" to your claim. The effect of these errors can often be that you are not receiving all the past and future money that you may be entitled to you.

Even if the VA grants your claim and starts paying you benefits, the Attig Law Firm recommends that you contact a VA Benefits Lawyer to make sure that the VA properly decided your claim and is paying you the right amount of benefits.

If the VA claims representative denies your claim, you should get a Ratings Decision that explains the "reasons and bases" for the VA's denial.  You will have one (1) year from the date that the Ratings Decision was sent to you to file a Notice of Disagreement (NOD) challenging the VA's Rating Decision.

C) The Veteran's Notice of Disagreement (NOD). The Attig Law Firm has a Veterans Benefits Blog - in that blog we have a post that discusses the Notice of Disagreement - called a NOD - in more detail.

Click here and the Attig Law Firm Veterans Benefits Blog Article (What is the Notice of Disagreement - NOD) will open in a new window.

D) The Decision Review Officer (DRO) review process. When the Veteran files the t;/strong>Notice of Disagreement (NOD), the Veteran should request that a Decision Review Officer (DRO) review the VA Ratings Decision.