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How a Veterans Disability Settlement Can Affect a Divorce Case
Jim’s client, a 58-year-old man is permanently disabled because of his military service. He receives a monthly pension benefit from the Department of Winchester veterans Disability attorney Affairs.
He would like to know how a jury award will impact his VA benefits. The answer is not. But it will have an impact on his other sources of income.
Can I Get Compensation in the event of an accident?
If you’ve served in the military and are permanently disabled due to injuries or illnesses, you may be eligible for a veteran disability settlement. This settlement will help pay you for medical bills, lost income, and other costs that resulted from your injury or sickness. The kind of settlement you are eligible for will depend on whether or not your injury or illness is a result of a service connection, the VA benefits you qualify for, and the cost to treat your injury or accident.
For example, Jim is a 58-year old veteran who was diagnosed with permanent disabilities after two years of service during the Vietnam War. Jim does not have enough space for work to be eligible for Social Security Disability benefits, however, he is able to claim a VA Pension that provides cash and medical treatment for free according to his financial need. He wants to find out if a personal injury settlement could affect his ability to get this benefit.
The answer will depend on whether the settlement is a lump-sum or a structured one. Structured settlements involve installments over time instead of one lump sum payment. The amount that defendant pays is calculated to offset the existing VA benefits. A lump sum payment can affect any existing VA benefits since the VA will annually calculate and consider it to be income. If Jim has extra assets after the settlement has been annualized the applicant can apply again to receive the Pension benefit. However his assets must be under a limit that the VA has set that establishes financial necessity.
Do I really need to hire an attorney?
Many service members, spouses, and former spouses have questions about VA disability benefits and their effect on financial issues in divorce. Some people think, for instance, that the Department of Veterans Affairs compensation payments can be split as the military retirement in divorce cases or that they’re «off limits» when it comes to calculating child support and alimony. These misconceptions could lead to grave financial errors.
While it is possible to make an initial claim for disability benefits by yourself, the majority of disabled veterans require the help of a qualified attorney. A disability attorney for veterans can examine your medical records in order to gather the evidence required to argue your case before the VA. The lawyer can also file any appeals you may require to receive the benefits you are entitled to.
The majority of VA disability lawyers do not charge for consultations. The government also pays the lawyer directly from your benefit of retroactive benefits. This is a benefit of the Equal Access to Justice Act. Your fee agreement should clearly specify the amount of retroactive benefits to be paid to your lawyer. A fee agreement could state, for example, that the government will pay the attorney up 20% of retroactive benefits. You will be accountable for any additional sums.
Can I Garnish My VA Benefits?
The VA pays monthly compensation to disabled boonville veterans disability lawsuit. The purpose of the payments is to help offset the effects of disabilities, diseases or injuries that are sustained or aggravated by a veteran’s military service. Like all incomes, northfield veterans disability lawyer disability benefits are subject to garnishment.
Garnishment is a legal action which allows a court require an employer or government agency to deduct funds from the wages of a person who owes money and transfer them directly to an individual creditor. In the event of divorce, garnishment could be used to pay spousal or child support or child support.
There are a few situations in which the benefits of a veteran can be garnished. The most common situation involves a veteran who waived their military retirement to receive disability compensation. In these instances, the portion of pension that is devoted to disability payments can be garnished to meet family support obligations.
In other circumstances, veteran’s benefits could be seized to pay medical expenses or federal student loans that are over due. In these instances the court might be able to the VA to obtain the necessary information. It is important for a disabled veteran to hire a knowledgeable lawyer to ensure that their disability benefits are not taken away. This will allow them to avoid having to rely on private loans and payday lenders.
Can I Represent Myself in a Divorce Case?
VA disability settlements can be an enormous benefit for veterans and their families, but they come with their own set of challenges. If a veteran gets divorced and receives a VA settlement then they must be aware of the impact this could have to their benefits.
One of the major issues in this regard is whether or not the disability payments are considered to be divisible assets in a divorce. This issue has been settled in a couple of ways. A Colorado court of appeals decision declared that VA disability payments were not property and therefore could not be divided this way. Another option is a U.S. Supreme Court ruling in Howell that ruled that garnishing a veteran’s VA disability benefits to pay for an alimony payment is a violation of the Uniformed Services Former Spouses Protection Act (USFSPA).
Another concern with this subject is the treatment of disability benefits for child support and maintenance. Both the USFSPA, and the Supreme Court, prohibit states from counting disability benefits as income. However, some states have taken a different approach. Colorado is one example. It takes all income sources together to determine the amount needed to support a spouse and then adds disability benefits in order to take into account their tax-free status.
It is also crucial that veterans are aware of how divorce affects their disability compensation and how ex-spouses could slash their benefits. If they are aware of these issues, veterans can ensure the security of their benefits and avoid unwanted consequences.