The Stateside Legal Advocate Tool Kit

This listing of resources is designed for legal aid and private attorney advocates who are working with military legal families on civil legal questions but may need to access federal law or regulations specific to their military status:

United States Code and CFR

 United States Code:         Title 10 (Armed Forces)     ·      Title 14  (Coast Guard)     ·      Title 32  (National Guard)     
    

Code of Federal Regulations: the complete list of CFRs is available online.

General Resources

Department of Defense web portal for official directives, forms, instructions and other resources.
 

Department of Defense Servicemember Database (to confirm military status of a particular individual)
 

The Armed Forces Legal Assistance website: a listing of materials designed for JAG and military legal assistance officers
 

Searchable library of military legal resources: This list is maintained by the Library of Congress
 

Joint Federal Travel Regulations: These regulations can be important in handling claims related to active duty service member and their families;
 

ROA Law Review Library:  Hundreds of articles provide specific information and citations on SCRA, USERRA, voting rights and other important legal issues.
 

The US Court of Appeals for the Armed Forces: The Court exercises worldwide appellate jurisdiction over members of the armed forces on active duty and other persons subject to the Uniform Code of Military Justice. Cases on the Court’s docket address a broad range of legal issues, including constitutional law, criminal law, evidence, criminal procedure, ethics, administrative law, and national security law.  Decisions by the Court are subject to direct review by the Supreme Court of the United States. The website includes searchable decisions
 

The Uniform Code of Military Justice:  This website provides the Uniform Code of Military Justice (UCMJ) in searchable form

Specific Branches

The Coast Guard Legal Program website: a listing of materials designed for Coast Guard JAG and military legal assistance officers

The US Air Force Legal Assistance website: a listing of materials designed for JAG and military legal assistance officers
 

A database of U.S. Army regulations;

Whether you are handling your first VA claim - or you are just trying to sharpen your skills and knowledge in this area of law - here are links to useful resources we have found. 

Basic Legal Resources

VA Accreditation
To prepare documents or advocate for individuals on specific VA claims, you must be accredited by the VA. This is required even if you are a lawyer in good standing in your state bar.

Source law
 

38 US Code Chapter 11 Compensation for Service-Connected Disability or Death

38 CFR 3, Subpart A  Pension, Compensation, and Dependency and Indemnity Compensation

38 CFR 4 Schedule for Rating Disabilities

M21-1MR VA Adjudications Procedure Manual posted on the Web Automated Reference Material System (WARMS)  - guidance used by VA staff in adjudicating claims

Additional Resources

How to File a Claim for VA Disability Compensation
This is Stateside's basic how-to manual for pro se claimants, based on veteran advocate Jim Strickland's work, but may be a good place to start - especially if you are new to this substantive area of law.

How to Appeal a VA Disability Compensation Claim
This classroom will help you through the appeal of the Board of Veterans' Appeals (BVA) decision that denied your claim for VA benefits. This classroom is generously supported by The Veterans Consortium Pro Bono Program. 

VA "Fully Developed Claim" process 
The VA claims that filing a Fully Developed Claim will speed up the claims process, both for your client and for the system as a whole. More details in the "fast letter" to VARO's here.

Veteran Advocacy Training: Interviews and Review of the VA Claims Process (videos)
If you like to learn by video, try out these training videos produced by the Veterans Hour series on blip.tv. 

Advanced VA Disability Legal Resources

Practice Before the US Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims
Links to the basic tools you'll need.

The Veterans Consortium Pro Bono Program
This organization provides free legal services in federal venues for veterans in need. They represent veterans unjustly denied benefits or compensation earned from military service, work on cases appealed to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit and the U.S. Supreme Court.

National Veterans Legal Services Program
This organization spearheads two major programs:  1) Training advocates to handle VA appeals, and 2) “Lawyers Serving Warriors” – providing pro bono support for initial VA claims.  They offer an array of high-quality reasonably-priced training materials for advocates.

Jim's Mailbag
Seasoned veteran advocate Jim Strickland has contributed hundreds of Q and A's with veteran claimants.  Use our site search to find relevant Mailbag submissions.  

Specific disabling conditions
We also post general information specific to certain disabling conditions, such as PTSD and traumatic brain injury.  Use our search function to find these resources. 

Self-Help Guide to Accessing VA Health Care. All veterans, regardless of discharge status, should know that they have the right to apply for VA healthcare, to receive a written decision, and to appeal any denial. This free self-help guide, created by The Wilmer Hale Legal Services Center of Harvard Law School, discusses how to apply for VA healthcare, how to maximize the chances of being approved, and what options are available if you run into difficulty.


Military Discharge Upgrade Legal Practice Manual. Although this is not a free resource, many advocates are using this tool to better assist veterans with their discharge upgrades.  The Military Discharge Upgrade Legal Practice Manual, written by attorneys from the Legal Services Center of Harvard Law School’s Veterans Legal Clinic and Connecticut Veterans Legal Center, is a comprehensive guide to representing veterans with less-than-honorable or otherwise stigmatizing discharges before military review boards.


ABA's Federal Free Legal Answers. ABA's Federal Free Legal Answers is a virtual legal advice clinic that focuses on federal legal issues, including veterans’ issues and immigration. Veterans, along with eligible dependents and survivors, who meet financial eligibility guidelines may submit questions about veterans’ issues involving discharge upgrades, VA disability and other VA benefits, and more. Volunteer attorneys who are licensed in good standing in their jurisdiction, and who are accredited with the U.S. Department with Veterans Affairs, are eligible to volunteer on the site to view and answer veterans’ questions without any formal representation.

The Military Commander and the Law. This current 736 page guide is designed as a desktop reference for JAG officers. It includes information on various legal issues specific to current military members and their families, with appropriate statutory citations.
 

The American Veterans and Servicemembers Survival Guide. This 649 page guide,  edited by David Addlestone and Craig Kubey with contributions from over 20 legal experts, covers a very wide variety of legal issues important to this client population. It was originally developed for Veterans for America and is now hosted online by the National Veterans Legal Services Program. Please note that the Guide has not been updated since 2009.
 

The Law Review Library Maintained by Captain Sam Wright of the Reserve Officers Association, this library covers a wide range of topics with special emphasis on USERRA and SCRA protections.
 

GAO reports on VA and Department of Defense programs and services:  These reports contain valuable background information and explanations on many of the most significant VA and Dept. of Defense benefits.
 

Congressional Committees on Veterans Affairs: The United States House and Senate Committees on Veteran Affairs include information about pending legislation and other important resources.
 

Justice for Vets offers a clearinghouse website and other resources for those interested in veteran treatment courts.
 

Proof of military service is essential.
The National Archives maintains detailed information about the process of documenting military service.  Your client or their "next of kin" can do this via the "E-Vets" portal maintained by the National Archive. 
 

If you are not the veteran or next of kin, you must complete the Standard Form 180 (SF 180) to request this information.

United States Code ·       

• Title 10 (Armed Forces)
         
• Title 14  (Coast Guard)
        
• Title 32  (National Guard)
         
• Title 38  (Veterans Benefits)
   

Code of Federal Regulations: Go here to view the complete CFR directory of federal regulations.
The following is a short-cut to volume 38 that may be particularly useful:
 

• Volume 38 of the Code (VA Benefits):
   

VA Guidelines on the use of legal services: A 2021 VA directive supports medical/legal collaborations at VAMC facilities. 

Legal Clinics: This is a spreadsheet of Free Legal Clinics associated with VA facilities.
 

VA forms: a searchable directory of all VA forms, including those available as fillable PDFs.
 

Veterans Benefits Administration References:  The web-automated reference materials system (WARMS) used by VA staff.
 

Board of VA Appeals Decisions: This searchable database of BVA decisions can be sorted by topic or year issued.
 

Opinions of the VA General Counsel: Precedent Opinions of the Office of VA General Counsel are available according to the year in which they were issued.  They are searchable by topic if you modify the search engine functionality on the top right of the page to search "current site only."
 

U.S. Court of Veterans Appeals: The Court website includes Court forms, a searchable database of attorneys and advocates qualified to appear before it, and Court decisions and opinions.