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WHAT WILL VETS GET FROM THE DAV'S PRO BONO
PROGRAM AT THE VETERANS' COURT? -- Law firm to
represent vets uses "newer lawyers" who are
"improving
their trial advocacy skills" for pro bono work.
Recently, the Disabled American Veterans (DAV)
announced a new program to represent some veterans with their cases before
the U.S. Court of Appeals for Veterans' Claims (CAVC).
The program will offer pro bono (free) legal
services.
The law firm of Finnegan, Henderson, Farabow,
Garrett & Dunner, LLP (from now on simply known as Finnegan) will be
providing attorneys for this service.
 This
new program presents many questions.
The DAV has stated that they will "offer free
representation at the Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims to certain
veterans."
Who are these "certain veterans?" DAV
states there will only be between 100 and 200 a year receiving this help.
If the DAV is serious about providing this type
of service, they should provide free legal representation at the CAVC for
ALL veterans who use their Service Officers to file an initial claim.
By helping just "certain veterans" (only DAV
members, perhaps) the DAV is discriminating against the majority of
veterans who come to them for help. And, the possibilities for abuse
of the process for choosing these "certain veterans" is beyond belief.
Also, there's the possibility for outright
dishonesty here. The DAV can lead veterans to believe that their
case could be one of the 100-200 who will get free representation at the
CAVC and use this as a recruiting tool.
And, what about the attorneys who will represent
these "certain veterans?"
I called Finnegan and asked for a list of all
attorneys who are admitted to practice before the CAVC. I have
received NO response to my request.
But, looking at Finnegan's web site, we can see
who will represent these "certain veterans." Finnegan says, in an
article for the Fall/Winter edition of the American Bar Association
newsletter, that their pro bono attorneys are "newer lawyers" who are
"improving their trial advocacy skills."
Well, like they say: "You get what you pay
for." Finnegan is using inexperienced attorneys who need Court time
to work with the DAV to represent veterans.
And, what will the DAV do? Just give the
easy cases to these "newer lawyers?"
Veterans law is extremely complex and those who
have been in the practice for a decade or more will tell you that it's not
something a "newer" attorney can learn overnight.
I wouldn't trust a young pup attorney to even
give me advice on veterans' law much less represent me before the CAVC.
This program is seriously flawed.
I'm afraid it going to be impossible to put
lipstick on this pig.
We have two pieces of information...first, the
DAV press release announcing this program...and second, the Finnegan
remarks about their pro bono attorneys.
-------------------------
Press release below:
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
DAV Announces New Pro Bono Program at Veterans' Court
WASHINGTON—The Disabled American Veterans has accepted a proposal from
Finnegan, Henderson, Farabow, Garrett & Dunner, one of the nation's
leading law firms, to offer free representation at the Court of Appeals
for Veterans Claims to certain veterans referred by DAV.
"This new arrangement will provide even more resources to disabled
veterans seeking to obtain benefits from the Department of Veterans
Affairs," said DAV National Adjutant Arthur H. Wilson. "In a number of
cases, they will now be able to access the resources of Finnegan and its
very talented lawyers in exercising their right to independent judicial
review of benefit decisions."
Under the agreement, Finnegan will offer pro bono representation at the
U.S. Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims to certain veterans referred by
DAV. All in all, Finnegan will likely handle between 100 and 200 cases
each year at the court, all of which will be selected from the thousands
that DAV handles - and will continue to handle - at VA's Board of
Veterans' Appeals.
"The DAV’s foremost concern continues to be ensuring that disabled
veterans have the very best representation possible as they pursue their
claims for disability compensation and other earned benefits from the VA,"
said Wilson. "We are very pleased that a prestigious firm such as Finnegan
has volunteered to provide pro bono services to our nation's veterans and
their families, services that will complement our cast program of
representation by National Appeals Officers, National Service Officers,
Transition Service Officers, Department Service Officers and Chapter
Service Officers."
The DAV was the first veterans service organization to submit an appellate
brief to the veterans court after it was established in 1988 and was the
first organization to present oral argument by a non-attorney
practitioner. The DAV also won the first fact-based decision handed down
by the court. The DAV also has long been a leader in developing programs
to provide pro bono representation to veteran claimants. For example, in
1992, that DAV partnered with the Veterans Consortium to establish a pro
bono program that continues to this day.
The 1.4 million-member Disabled American Veterans, a non-profit
organization founded in 1920 and chartered by the U.S. Congress in 1932,
represents this nation’s disabled veterans. It is dedicated to a single
purpose: building better lives for our nation’s disabled veterans and
their families. For more information, visit the organization’s Web site,
www.dav.org .
---------------
Finnegan remarks here...
http://www.finnegan.com/news/news-popup.
cfm?id=2366&type=news&pubType=2
Remarks below (emphasis is mine):
Spotlight on Finnegan, Henderson, Farabow,
Garrett & Dunner, LLP
Fall/Winter 2008, ABA Newsletter Spreading
Justice
Finnegan initiated its Litigation Mentor Program in 2000, then one of the
only programs of its kind in the nation. This ambitious and rare program
is a unique opportunity for newer lawyers to give back to the
community while improving their trial advocacy skills. Barbara
Butterworth, an attorney at Finnegan and the firm’s Litigation Mentor
since 2005, provides in her article an overview of Finnegan’s extensive
pro bono program.
Since the program’s inception, lawyers in the Litigation Mentor Program
have represented more than 50 criminal defendants through every phase of
the criminal process. In January 2004, Finnegan renewed and increased its
commitment to its firm-wide civil pro bono program. The firm assigned
retired partner and experienced trial lawyer John Lowe as full-time Pro
Bono Coordinator. One of the firm’s signature efforts in civil pro bono
was the rescue of the nonprofit organization Washington Area Lawyers for
the Arts (WALA), which provides legal advice and referrals for artists
needing legal representation. The firm also runs a free legal clinic at a
local homeless shelter one night each month. In addition, the firm rounds
out its civil pro bono work by providing pro bono lawyers for work on
cases from organizations specializing in immigration, small claims, and
veterans’ rights.
John Lowe captures the experience of the firm when he is quoted, “Our pro
bono cases have genuinely touched the lawyers who have worked on them –
and have probably changed those lawyers forever.”
To view full article, please click here...
http://www.finnegan.com/images/pdf/BEB%20Spotlight%20
on%20Finnegan%20-%20Fall%20Winter%202008%
20-%20PUBLISHED%20VERSION.pdf
-------------------------
posted by Larry
Scott
Founder and Editor
VA Watchdog dot Org
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