Your Worst Nightmare About Veterans Disability Litigation Bring To Life

How a Veterans Disability Settlement Can Affect a Divorce Case

Jim's 58 year old client is permanently disabled as a result of his service in the military. He receives a monthly Pension benefit from the Department of Veterans Affairs.

He would like to know how a jury award will affect his VA benefits. The answer is that it will not. But it will have some impact on the other sources of income he has.

Can I receive compensation for an accident?

If you've served in the military but are now permanently disabled due to injuries or illnesses, you may be eligible for a veterans disability settlement. This settlement will pay you for medical expenses, lost income and other costs that resulted from your injury or sickness. The kind of settlement you'll be able to receive will depend on whether your condition is service-connected or not connected, the VA benefits you are eligible for, and what your injury or accident will cost to treat.

For instance, Jim is a 58-year old veteran who was diagnosed with permanent disabilities after two years of service in the Vietnam War. He doesn't have enough work space to qualify for Social Security Disability benefits, but he has the VA Pension, which provides free medical treatment and cash based on his financial need. He wants to know if a personal injury settlement could affect his ability to get this benefit.

The answer is dependent on whether the settlement is a lump-sum or a structured one. Structured settlements are payments made over a time frame rather than a single payment, and the amount paid by the defendant is used to offset any existing VA benefits. A lump sum settlement can affect any existing VA benefits since the VA will annually evaluate and vimeo.com consider it income. If Jim has excess assets after the settlement is annually adjusted, he can reapply to receive the Pension benefit. However the assets he has to be below a threshold the VA has determined to be a financial necessity.

Do I require an attorney?

Many spouses, military personnel, and former spouses are confused about VA disability compensation and its impact on money issues in a divorce case. Some people believe, for instance, that Department of Veterans Affairs compensation payments can be divided like the military retirement in divorce proceedings or that they're "off limits" in calculating child support and alimony. These misconceptions can lead to financial mistakes that have serious repercussions.

While it is possible to make an initial claim for disability benefits on your own, most disabled veterans benefit from the help of a qualified lawyer. A qualified veteran's disability lawyer can review your medical documents and gather the required evidence to make a convincing argument to the VA. The lawyer can also file any appeals you may need in order to receive the benefits you deserve.

Additionally, the majority of VA disability lawyers don't charge fees for consultations. In addition that the lawyer will normally be paid by the government directly from your award of retroactive past-due benefits. This is a benefit of the Equal Access to Justice Act. Your fee agreement should clearly define the percentage of retroactive benefits to be paid to your lawyer. For example an agreement on fees could provide that the government can pay the lawyer up to 20% of the retroactive benefits or provide. You will be accountable for any additional sums.

Can I Garnish My VA Benefits?

The VA pays a monthly amount of compensation to disabled veterans. The funds are meant to compensate for the effects of diseases, injuries or disabilities sustained or aggravated during the course of a veteran's time of service. Like all incomes, benefits for sun-clinic.co.il veterans with disabilities are subject to garnishment.

Garnishment is a court-ordered procedure that an employer or government agency withhold cash from the pay of a person who owes a debt and send it directly to a creditor. In the event of a divorce, garnishment could be used to pay spousal support or child support.

There are a few situations where disability benefits may be garnished. Most often, it is the case of a veteran who renounced his military retirement in order to receive disability compensation. In these cases the part of pension that is allocated to disability benefits can be garnished in order to cover the obligations of family support.

In other cases, a veteran's benefits may also be seized in order to cover medical expenses or federal student loans that are past due. In these cases a judge can refer a case directly to the VA for the information they require. A disabled veteran should hire an experienced lawyer to protect their disability benefits. This will help them avoid having to rely on payday loans or private loans. lenders.

Can I Represent Myself in a Divorce Case?

VA disability settlements can be a big aid to veterans and their families, however they don't come without their own set of issues. If a person divorces and receives a VA settlement, he or she should know what this will do to their benefits.

A major issue in this regard is whether or not disability payments are considered to be divisible assets in divorce. This question has been answered in two ways. A Colorado court of appeals decision decided that VA disability payments were not property and could not be divided in this way. Another option is an U.S. Supreme Court ruling in Howell which held that garnishing the veteran's VA disability benefits to pay Alimony is against the Uniformed Services Former Spouses Protection Act (USFSPA).

Another concern relating to this issue is the treatment of disability benefits for child support and maintenance. Both the USFSPA, as well as the Supreme Court, prohibit states from utilizing disability benefits as income. Some states have an alternative approach. Colorado is one example. It takes all income sources together to determine the amount needed to support a spouse and then adds on disability payments to account for their tax-free status.

Finally, it is important for veterans to know how their disability compensation will be affected when they get divorced and how their spouses' ex-spouses could garnish their compensation. If they are aware of these issues, columbia veterans disability lawyer can safeguard their earnings and avoid any unwanted consequences.