It does not matter whether a sexually assaulted claimant has tried once or several times to service-connect his/her PTSD or related psychiatric disability claim. In either case, military sexual trauma (MST) claims are difficult to prove. Rarely will the victim have reported the incident at or near the time of the in-service assault, and rarely will there be any other …

It is never too late to file a VA disability claim. Claimants are not limited in the number of disability claims they may file. But there are important distinctions to keep in mind. For claims seeking service-connection, the VA calls them original claims, and once they are denied and become final, all other claims are called claims to reopen. As …

Let’s start at the beginning.  A veteran or claimant begins the adjudication process by filing a claim(s) for entitlement to a service-connected disability at one of the many local VA regional offices or with a local DAV or VFW.  A VA employee called a Rating Specialist develops the claim(s) by gathering evidence and then decides the claim and sends it …

Disability Benefits Questionnaires or DBQs are the standard VA templates for VA and private examination reports.  DBQs set forth an exhaustive list of questions to be addressed by physicians and these responses are the used to evaluate a veteran’s disability claim.  If your treating physician or a consulting physician is going to write an opinion in support of your claim, …

That is a very good question.  There is no doubt that the vast majority of VSOs try their level best to help disabled veterans, and many do a very fine job at it.  However, in recent years, the VA disability system has become more complex and adversarial. Due to incompetency, needless formality and basic insensitivity, many VA regional offices have …

Filling out paperwork isn’t what you planned to do as a military member, and filling out paperwork after your discharge to obtain disability benefits can seem overwhelming sometimes. We get it, but if you want a favorable TDIU decision, some dreaded paperwork is necessary.   The VA is now requiring that veterans submit Form 21-8940 at some point prior to …

As a military member, you get used to accomplishing what seems impossible every day and so it’s hard to acknowledge that you may meet the VA’s criteria for a TDIU rating of 100% unemployability. It may seem like you are giving up, but it isn’t. It’s just making sure you and your family are receiving benefits to which they are …

Now that you or your spouse have completed your active military duty and returned to the civilian world, you may feel like you have merely exchanged one set of stresses for another, including navigating the VA’s application process for any disability benefits to which you might be entitled. You might have heard about TDIU – total disability individual unemployability – …

Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is one of the most common psychiatric disorders that military members suffer from during and after their service. Yet, it is also one of the most difficult conditions to prove for the purposes of establishing disability benefits for veterans. A knowledgeable disability benefits attorney in your area is your best chance to prove that you are …

TDIU is a benefit awarded to service members who can no longer work due to their military-related conditions. However, there are some specific situations in which a veteran can work and still collect benefits for TDIU. Known as the “marginal employment” exception, a former service member can work and collect TDIU so long as the veteran earns less than the …