Lawyers may charge reasonable fees
to represent veterans, says new law

In order to better educate lawyers about the recently implemented Veterans Benefits Healthcare and Information Technology Act, the Section of Administrative and Regulatory Law hosted a panel session to discuss the costs and benefits of allowing the participation of paid lawyers in the veterans' affairs claim adjudication process. The panelists featured were from the National Veterans Legal Services and Department of Veterans Affairs.

Regulations regarding the implementation of the new law are still being processed to reflect suggestions received during the 30-day comment period that ended in June 2007. In the original wording, the proposed regulations suggested a testing requirement for certifying lawyers who wish to represent veterans. 

The ABA submitted comments that cautioned against testing, instead encouraging the VA to consider ongoing education or related opportunities as other means of ensuring and maintaining lawyer competence. The panel representatives from the VA confirmed that they were re-evaluating the exam requirement after many advocacy groups, along with the ABA, shared concerns that the way in which the exam would be administered might have an unintentionally adverse effect on lawyers who represent veterans pro bono.

As there is already a backlog of VA claim cases,"the biggest concern for all parties involved is the lengthy appeal process," stated Thomas Pamperin, deputy director, Department of Veterans Affairs, Compensation & Pension Services. "Appropriate education and training is necessary so attorneys aren’t further contributing to the lengthy process of claim appeals and the backlog of cases."

Panelists discussed possible future CLE training topics, and concluded that there needs to be a focus on substantive and procedural issues. For example, lawyers wanting to represent veterans in these cases need to be familiar with how service benefits work and the deadlines for filing a disagreement with the Board of Veterans' Appeals.  Several entities within the ABA are interested in partnering with veterans organizations and the VA in developing educational programs for lawyers interested in the field.

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