Frequently Asked QuestionS
We are able to serve most of our clients on a contingency
fee basis, which means you pay no money up front, and we
don’t charge any fees if we don’t win your case. Our fee
is typically taken out of past due benefits. So, if you
first filed your claim two years ago, and we get VA to
award you benefits going back that far, our fee would be a
percentage of the increased compensation VA awards you for
that period of time. All future benefits are yours to
keep.
We do not keep win / loss statistics because winning and
losing with VA is not always cut and dry. Because we
typically work on contingency, we do not get paid unless
you win. If we open your file, that means we believe you
have a strong case, and we will fight to get you every
benefit you deserve. While there are similarities between
some kinds of cases, every VA disability case comes with
its own unique fact pattern. Sometimes we open a case, and
after we review the medical records, we discover it is not
as strong a case as we originally thought. It is our job
to keep you informed at all points in the development of
your case. Sometimes, a case can be won incrementally. For
example, one client was fighting for service-connected
benefits for his irritable bowel syndrome (IBS). VA
initially said the IBS was not related to service. We
appealed. VA issued a new decision which recognized the
client’s condition began during service, but VA did not
consider all his current symptoms when assigning a rating.
We filed a second appeal to get him the maximum possible
rating based on his symptoms. We will keep fighting for
you until we either win everything possible or determine
there is nothing left to win.
The short answer is, NO. We have a virtual practice, and
can represent clients in all 50 states, any territory, and
even eligible claimants living overseas. We use video
conferencing, telephone calls, emails, and a combination
of electronic documents and snail mail to communicate with
clients. We can upload necessary documents to VA
electronically, or mail, and fax them. With the Appeals
Modernization and Improvement Act (AMA), VA now pushes all
claims at the Regional Office level through the National
Work Que – meaning a claim that was filed by a veteran
living in New York, may be decided by the Seattle Regional
Office, depending on the work level and staffing at the
various offices. There is no reason to be in the same city
or even state as the Regional Office processing your
claim. This provides the most choice of counsel to the
clients, who can select a representative from anywhere in
the country.