Approximately 2 million veterans have returned from Iraq and Afganistan, many of whom suffer from the physical and mental injuries of war. Of nearly 1.3 million verterans discharged since 2001, nearly half have filed disability compensation claims with the Department of Veteran Affairs. Since 2005, the number of new claims filed at the VA has doubled, causing significant delays in the time it takes veterans to receive both free health care and compensation for their service-connected disabilities. As the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals recently noted in its decision, Veterans for Common Sense v. Shinseki, it now "takes an average of more than four years for a veteran to fully adjudicate a claim for benefits." For veterans, the VA disablity benefits system is labyrinthine, lengthy, and frustratingly complex.

This webinar will focus on the challenges disabled veterans face in obtaining benefits and how practicing attorneys can help them navigate the VA claims process. Speakers will discuss the VA benefits system, the nuts and bolts of representing veterans whose claims have been denied, and avenues for getting involved in veterans pro bono cases.