VA Appeals Person

[Dan Arnes]

I would prefer not to send this out to everyone by email, so here is an Email I received from Seawolf Phillip Sheckler

Dan:

"Since as the membership director you have all contacts with the Seawolf organization (http://seawolf.org/index.asp) officers and its members and you are the only [one] that I am [in] contact with.
Where I live I try to help Post 9-11 and Vietnam Vets out and clearly understand that the VA is very problematic in helping with service related problems.  
Most of us Veterans (especially Vietnam Veterans) have no clue how to deal with VA and just give up on claim or in many instances or how to file a claim.
I was one of those Vets, then I got in contact with Peter Cameron and things changed for the better. I recommend Peter to all the Vets that I come in contact with and would like you to help spread the word about him.
He is really that good, and please feel [free] to contact him about his practice and other questions you may have for him. Also I do not know that the VA pays for his services when successful and he represent Veterans no matter where they live..  

I personally have used him and he comes with 5 star ratings and he is ex-navy. Below is information so if possible you could get his contact information out to the Seawolves need[ing] help with the VA or having any questions about VA claims, he knows how to successfully deal with the VA no matter what state or city they live.

I personally recommend him and [to] go to his website (https://veteranappeal.com/attorney/) to see that many others also speak very highly of him.
Also I have no business affiliation with him and [am] just recommending him to see if [he] could help others.



Phillip Sheckler

[kid purington]

Thanks Dan and Phillip.!!   Information comes at a great time..  (it's a long story)

[Dan Arnes]

Kid,
I emailed Peter Cameron to make sure he was OK with me posting his card and he had no problem, was glad I did, so could be a help to ya'.

[Mike Brinck]

The following is not a comment on the qualifications and quality of representation by the attorney mentioned in the beginning of this string started by Dan.

BEFORE anyone hires an attorney to represent them at VA, go to:

https://www.vetadvocates.org/cpages/fees-which-may-be-charged-by-agent-attorney

The website details when and how much an attorney may charge a vet for VA-related work.  There are limitations on both when and how much.

[Dan Arnes]

Good catch Mike!

Phillip didn't mention anything about any payments, so I didn't even think about that, and frankly, I didn't see that his card mentioned "Law Offices".

Thanks

[Mike Brinck]

I forgot to add that the veterans service organizations (VSOs) like the Legion, DAV, VFW, VVA, AMVETS, Purple Heart, and many counties, etc all hire Service Officers to assist veterans with filing disability claims with VA.  Few, if any, are attorneys and if the vet is not satisfied with the service they provide, the vet can switch their Power of Attorney to any other Service Officer.

VSO Service Officers DO THIS AT NO CHARGE TO THE VET, and if one suggests some type of payment, they should be reported immediately to the parent organization.

To link up with a Service Officer, call the VA Regional Office in the state in which the vet resides and ask for a service officer either by name or organization.

[Ben(Smitty)Smith]

I just had a rude awakening, after well over a year and three different hearing test, I finally won a decision in my favor. They awarded me 10% disability Yes!!!!!!! No, they attached it to my teninitis which is at 10% and by V.A. math instead of adding up to 20% it only adds up to 10%. I feel like I've been f-----.

[Mike Brinck]

Not that understanding how VA calculates total disability ratings when multiple disabilities are added together will make you feel less f______, here's a link to how VA does the "VA math" calculation:

https://themilitarywallet.com/va-math-combined-disability-ratings/

As an aside, this system was first developed around WWI and still used by VA.  In their defense (sorta), the system was designed to reflect the effect disability(s) would have in what was generally a manual labor workforce as opposed to today when manual labor comprises a smaller sector of the workforce.  For example, something like a bad knee would have less effect on an office worker than on a manual laborer.

[Ben(Smitty)Smith]

Thank you very much for the information, it was most helpful.