ATTORNEY TRAINING INFORMATION

Thanks for your interest in representing veterans and VA claimants in their appeal before the U.S. Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims (CAVC). We appreciate your volunteer spirit. The program works as follows: We provide training free of charge to lawyers who agree to represent a veteran/VA claimant before the CAVC. As well as receiving the day-long training, attorneys who participate in the program are provided a mentor (a practicing veterans law lawyer), the Veterans Benefits Manual (VBM), and other veterans law-related publications.

VETERANS AND THEIR FAMILIES NEED YOUR HELP

Since 1933, veterans of the United States Armed Forces have been frustrated by laws which prohibited judicial review of denials of their claims for federal veterans benefits. With the passage of the landmark Veterans' Judicial Review Act in 1988, veterans who are denied benefits by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) can appeal to the U.S. Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims.

The Court has sparked an enormous demand for legal representation by veterans seeking judicial review. More than 36,000 veterans and family members have filed appeals in the Court. Most cases involve claims for VA disability benefits.

Unfortunately, for many veterans the promise of effective judicial review has proved elusive. In 2006, more than 60% of those who filed an appeal to the Court were unrepresented at the time they file their appeal. Unrepresented veterans are obviously at a significant disadvantage in litigating against the VA General Counsel’s Office, which represents the VA in all proceedings at the Court.