Legal Help for Veterans blog.
Claims Processing
The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) has touted the seriousness of military sexual trauma (MST) claims. The VA has explained that these claims deserve individualized and careful review. As such, these claims are supposed to adhere to a specific set of evidentiary rules, addressing how challenging it is for survivors to document their assault. However, […]
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Medical Issues / Disability, PTSD
At Legal Help For Veterans, PLLC, we represent many survivors of Military Sexual Trauma, also called MST. If you’re unfamiliar with the term, take a look at our recent blog covering Military Sexual Trauma Disability Claims. In this article, we will address some common misconceptions people often have about MST. Misconception #1 Only young women […]
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Veterans Law
As unfortunate as it is, many service members will experience some form of sexual assault, harassment, or other trauma during their military service. These experiences have profound impacts on survivors, but some relief could come in the form of compensation and other benefits from the Department of Veterans Affairs. Military Sexual Trauma (MST) Though many […]
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News and Press
As unfortunate as it is, many service members will experience some form of sexual assault, harassment or other trauma during their time in the military. These experiences have a profound effect on the survivor and could potentially qualify them for compensation and other benefits from the Department of Veterans’ Affairs. Military sexual trauma (MST) can […]
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Mental Health, News and Press
John Rowan, the National President of Vietnam Veterans of America, has delivered a letter to President Barack Obama as well as President-elect Donald Trump. The contents of the letter includes a plea for a pardon of tens of thousands of post-9/11 service members who were discharged for infractions related to mental health. According to Rowan, […]
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News and Press
Senator Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY) has told Politico that she is planning to push for a new vote on her military sexual assault reform bill. Last year, the senator’s bill was defeated in Congress. Gillibrand’s bill sought to put the decision to prosecute sexual assault cases into the hands of prosecutors, not commanding officers. But those […]
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Claims Processing, Medical Issues / Disability, Mental Health
The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) announced in early December that it would expand eligibility for veterans in need of mental health care due to sexual assault or sexual harassment that occurred during their military service. This expansion comes under the authority from the recent VACAA legislation (Veterans Access, Choice, and Accountability Act of 2014). […]
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Claims Processing, PTSD, Veterans Law
Veterans may not realize that they do not need new evidence in order to resubmit a previously denied claim for PTSD benefits related to military sexual trauma (MST), according to a new report from the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO). The report also claims evidence that an overwhelming number of veterans who are aware of […]
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Claims Processing, Medical Issues / Disability, Mental Health, News and Press, PTSD
Jim Fausone Veteran Disability Attorney One of the saddest situations we help with involves military sexual trauma (MST). The rape of men and women in the military is a black stain on the Defense Department. The VA disability process only makes this stain more stubborn. We have developed an approach that looks at markers that show the MST […]
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News and Press
by Kristina Derro Veterans Disability Attorney Sixteen men and women who were raped and assaulted during active service filed a recent lawsuit against the Pentagon. The lawsuit accuses the military of condoning a culture that fails to prosecute the offenders of sex crimes and instead punishes the sexual assault victims who come forward to report […]
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