Law360 interviewed Finnegan partner Beth Ferrill to discuss the complex bureaucracy of the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) and how she leverages her military experience to assist fellow veterans in pro bono representation.
Beth has been involved with veterans’ pro bono cases for more than a decade, including at the U.S. Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims (CAVC). These cases often involve individuals who have been assigned a disability rating, which sets an individual threshold for certain disability benefits, like medical care or a monthly stipend. She explained, “Veterans have to apply for and fight for these ratings…The people we see didn’t get a fair shake from the VA. We are helping them get a higher rating, and if we’re successful they get a lot of other benefits associated with that higher rating.”
The VA can be slow to understand certain conditions like post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and sexual trauma, and how those conditions can manifest well after an individual’s military service, thus resulting in a denial of disability claims. As Beth notes, many disabilities are specific to the individual and their personal experiences, which can make the evaluation process more complicated: “For some people, their bodies do OK and they live a good life afterward…Someone could say, someone else jumped out of a plane 500 times and they’re fine. But it’s not the same for everyone.”
While the VA disability rating system is intended to prevent abuse, Beth explains that the dollar amounts of the benefits are often barely enough to prevent an individual from entering poverty. For example, an individual who is 100 percent disabled and unable to work can receive only up to $36,000 a year in VA disability benefits.
Read “BigLaw Attys Take On VA Roadblocks to Help Fellow Veterans” here.
