Proving Exposure to Agent Orange (Attorney)
Description
Proving that a veteran was exposed to Agent Orange while in service can unlock disability benefits for several diseases including ischemic heart disease, diabetes, and numerous forms of cancer. Sometimes establishing Agent Orange exposure is as easy as looking at a veteran’s DD Form 214. In many cases, however, it’s not so simple, and advocates must go to great lengths to prove that the veteran was exposed to herbicides. This webinar will focus on the difficult cases in which Agent Orange exposure is not immediately apparent. We will explain what strategies and techniques advocates should use to convince the VA that a veteran was exposed to herbicides. The cost of this webinar is only $105. Continuing Legal Education (CLE) credit is being requested from the Commonwealth of Virginia. If granted, this credit will count (in part) toward satisfying the VA’s accreditation requirements.
This 90-minute webinar will cover:
• The importance of establishing Agent Orange exposure and how it can lead to the VA granting disability compensation benefits.
• When the VA will presume Agent Orange exposure based on different types of service in Vietnam, Korea, or aboard C-123 aircraft.
• Review of VA guidance related to several situations in which veterans had brief service in Vietnam and advocacy advice related to these situations.
• Special VA rules related to herbicide exposure in Thailand and advocacy tips to help ensure that the VA properly applies these rules.
• Research techniques for proving that a veteran served in an area where herbicides were used.
• The brown water/blue water Vietnam service distinction and advice for making arguments that veterans were exposed to Agent Orange in Vietnam’s deep water harbors in the aftermath of
the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit’s recent decision in Gray v. Secretary of Veterans Affairs.
• Special effective date rules that apply in certain Agent Orange-related cases which can lead to veterans receiving large sums of retroactive benefits
• Advice for proving actual exposure to Agent Orange if the veteran does not have the type of service for which the VA will presume such exposure.
This class will give advocates the knowledge they need to be successful in their Agent Orange-related claims.