Veterans

VA Secretary McDonough Joins LSC for Virtual Forum on Supporting Veterans with Substance Use Disorder

richardsons@lsc.gov — Mon, 18 Nov 2024 19:13:03 +0000

VA Secretary McDonough Joins LSC for Virtual Forum on Supporting Veterans with Substance Use Disorder richardsons@lsc.gov Mon, 11/18/2024 - 14:13

Talk Justice: Episode 70

richardsons@lsc.gov — Mon, 12 Feb 2024 17:53:15 +0000

Talk Justice: Episode 70 richardsons@lsc.gov Mon, 02/12/2024 - 12:53

Rep. Laurel Lee and Veterans’ Advocates Join LSC for Event Highlighting Housing Initiatives for Veterans

fanlundk@lsc.gov — Fri, 10 Nov 2023 18:32:17 +0000

Rep. Laurel Lee and Veterans’ Advocates Join LSC for Event Highlighting Housing Initiatives for Veterans fanlundk@lsc.gov Fri, 11/10/2023 - 13:32

LSC's 2023 Veterans Day Program

sierra-chacona@lsc.gov — Wed, 25 Oct 2023 14:37:49 +0000

LSC's 2023 Veterans Day Program sierra-chacona… Wed, 10/25/2023 - 10:37

November 13, 2023 • 2:00pm - 3:30pm •

Conference / Forum

Join the ��˶�� (LSC) on Zoom for our annual Veterans Day program, Monday, November 13, 2023, from 2:00 – 3:30 p.m. Eastern Time. This year’s event highlights the legal needs of Veterans who are unhoused or at risk for homelessness. Building on the work of LSC’s Veterans Task Force, we’ll hear from legal services providers, homelessness advocates, policymakers and leaders from the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs.

If you are interested in learning more about the legal issues that make it difficult for Veterans to obtain or maintain stable housing and possible solutions, register here.

The program also will be livestreamed on LSC’s Facebook page and a recording will be available on our YouTube channel shortly after the event.

We hope to see you on Nov. 13 and we welcome you to share this invitation with others. Contact updates@lsc.gov with any questions.

Read LSC's Veterans Task Force Report, published in 2021.

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LSC's 2022 Veterans Day Program

richardsons@lsc.gov — Tue, 15 Nov 2022 17:40:45 +0000

LSC's 2022 Veterans Day Program richardsons@lsc.gov Tue, 11/15/2022 - 12:40

November 17, 2022 • 2:00pm - 3:30pm •

Virtual

Join us for the ��˶��’s virtual celebration of our Nation’s Veterans. This year, in collaboration with our Veterans Task Force and Rural Justice Task Force, LSC celebrates the work of legal aid practitioners and partners, throughout the country, who serve the unique needs and interests of Veterans residing in rural communities. Join us as our panelists discuss common barriers in many rural settings, issues such as geographic and social isolation, weaker infrastructure, and the low density of legal aid and other human services providers, and the outsized impact these challenges have on the rural Veteran population.

Join us on Thursday, November 17, 2022 at 2:00 p.m. ET by registering for the webinar here or streaming live on our Facebook page. We hope to see you then!

Live - Streaming

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Veterans

LSC Board Chair John G. Levi Releases Veterans Day Statement

fanlundk@lsc.gov — Fri, 11 Nov 2022 16:45:00 +0000

LSC Board Chair John G. Levi Releases Veterans Day Statement fanlundk@lsc.gov Fri, 11/11/2022 - 11:45

Talk Justice: Episode Twenty Two

richardsons@lsc.gov — Tue, 09 Nov 2021 15:56:13 +0000

Talk Justice: Episode Twenty Two richardsons@lsc.gov Tue, 11/09/2021 - 10:56

Veterans Day 2021 Event: Ensuring Veterans' Access to Vital Legal Services

yanezc@lsc.gov — Fri, 29 Oct 2021 15:49:09 +0000

Veterans Day 2021 Event: Ensuring Veterans' Access to Vital Legal Services yanezc@lsc.gov Fri, 10/29/2021 - 11:49

November 09, 2021 • 1:00pm - 3:00pm •

Zoom

Conference / Forum

The ��˶��'s annual Veterans Day event will be held on Tuesday, November 9th, from 1:00 - 3:00 pm ET. This year, we are honored to have the House Access to Legal Aid Caucus as a co-sponsor of the event. The program will share findings from the Veterans Task Force Report, released last spring, and feature many of the Report's contributors.

You may view the event details and a full participant list in the program.

You are welcome to register for the virtual event or watch the event live on LSC’s Facebook page. You do not need a Facebook account. If you are prompted to log in to view, click the “not now” option.

To read more about LSC's Veterans Task Force, please click here.

Veterans Task Force Report

The Veterans Task Force’s report identifies ways to strengthen the relationship between legal aid providers and other veterans-serving organizations. It highlights best practices and model programs that provide effective, integrated services to veterans and offers tips for replicating successful programs.

Read the report

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Past Veterans Day and Task Force events

Report Release Event

The Veterans Task Force held a report release event to communicate the findings and recommendations from the report to the public. The first Veterans Task Force Report Rollout event was held on May, 25th 2021. Additional details from the event may be found below:

Field Hearings

The Veterans Task Force has held various field hearings to raise awareness of the legal issues faced by veterans. The first field hearing was held on September, 21st, 2020. Additional details from the event may be found below:

The second field hearing, serving as the third Veterans Day event, was held on November, 10th, 2020. Additional details from the event may be found below:

Veterans Day Events

Since 2018, the ��˶�� has held annual Veterans Day forums in honor of those who have served our country. The programs aim to increase awareness of the various civil legal issues faced by service members and highlight legal solutions to mitigate barriers to veterans' well-being and financial stability. For more information on LSC's past Veterans Day events, please visit the following pages.

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Report

LSC Veterans Task Force Report

richardsons@lsc.gov — Tue, 08 Jun 2021 19:50:09 +0000

LSC Veterans Task Force Report richardsons@lsc.gov Tue, 06/08/2021 - 15:50

LSC’s Veterans Task Force worked for more than a year in collaboration with its pro bono partner, DLA Piper, to identify ways to strengthen the relationship between legal aid providers and other veterans-serving organizations. The task force's report highlights best practices and model programs that provide effective, integrated services to veterans and offers tips for replicating successful programs. It also offers recommendations for engaging attorneys to provide legal assistance on a pro bono basis.

Summary

Military service members dedicate their lives to defending America’s people, freedoms, and ways of life. When they return from serving, they may face legal issues that complicate their lives as Veterans. Civil legal problems — from threatened evictions to other-than-honorable discharges from the military — are often the greatest obstacles to a veteran’s health, housing, stability, and productivity. While civil legal needs are prevalent among veterans, low-income veterans and other military personnel received inadequate or no professional legal help for 88% of their civil legal problems in 2017.

In January 2020, the ��˶�� created the Veterans Task Force to examine the reasons underlying the gap between veterans’ legal needs and the services available to meet those needs. The Task Force’s purposes were to:

Raise awareness about the civil legal issues veterans experience;
Identify ways to strengthen relationships between civil legal aid providers and other veteran-serving organizations, including the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), treatment courts, and veterans advocacy organizations;
Highlight model programs that provide effective, integrated services to veterans; and
Recommend strategies for engaging attorneys to provide legal assistance to veterans on a pro bono basis, including for complex legal issues.

This Report organizes the Task Force’s recommendations according to audience, including recommendations for:

(1) Civil legal aid providers;

(2) Law firms and corporate law departments;

(3) LSC;

(4) State and local governments; and

(5) Congress.

It emphasizes that veterans should not have to fight for basic services when they return home. Instead, they should be able to access the benefits they have earned and so richly deserve. Together, the legal aid, law firm and corporate law, and government communities have the power and resources to fill the veteran service gap. Now is the time for these communities to unite in support of our country’s veterans.

PDF

Click here to download a PDF version of the Veterans Task Force Report

Task Force

Click here to learn more about LSC's Veterans Task Force

Fact Sheet

Click here for our Veterans Fact Sheet

Veterans

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Veterans Pro Bono Grant Program

admin — Wed, 14 Apr 2021 14:48:06 +0000

Veterans Pro Bono Grant Program admin Wed, 04/14/2021 - 10:48

The Veterans Pro Bono Grant facilitates the provision of high-quality legal and other assistance, without charge, to veterans and other individuals who are unable to afford the cost of legal representation in connection with decisions of, or other proceedings in, the U.S. Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims.

Overview

Congress established the Veterans Pro Bono Program Grant program in 1991 to facilitate pro bono legal assistance to individuals who could not afford to hire an attorney to represent them in cases before the U.S. Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims (the Court), located in Washington, DC. Funds for the Veterans Pro Bono Program are authorized by and subject to Public Law 102-229, title I, ch. II, 105 Stat. 1701, 1710, as incorporated by reference in subsequent appropriations for the Court These cases are appeals of the decisions of the Board of Veterans' Appeals (BVA). The Court has exclusive jurisdiction over BVA decisions and reviews their decisions when they are appealed by claimants who believe there was an error. The Court's review of BVA decisions is based on the record before the agency and arguments of the parties, which are presented in a written brief, with oral argument generally held only in cases presenting new legal issues.

Public Law 102-229 requires this assistance to be provided through "a program that furnishes case screening and referral, training and education for attorney and related personnel, and encouragement and facilitation of pro bono representation by members of the bar and law school clinical and other appropriate programs, such as veterans service organizations, and through defraying expenses incurred in providing representation to such persons. . . ."

Congress also specified that these activities would be funded through grants or contracts made by LSC. The Veterans Consortium has been the Veterans Pro Bono Program grantee since its inception in 1992.

Please email your questions about the Veterans Pro Bono Grant to veteransprobono@lsc.gov.

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Veterans Pro Bono Grant FAQs

Program Description

Funds for the Veterans Pro Bono Program are authorized and subject to Public Law 102-229, title I, ch. II, 105 Stat. 1701, as incorporated by reference in subsequent appropriations for the United States Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims (Court). That law requires the Court to provide the funds to LSC to award grants or contracts for the provision of "legal or other assistance, without charge, to veterans and other persons who are unable to afford the cost of legal representation in connection with decisions" of, or other proceedings in, the Court.

Public Law 102-229 requires this assistance to be provided through a "program that furnishes case screening and referral, training and education for attorney and related personnel, and encouragement and facilitation of pro bono representation by members of the bar and law school clinical and other appropriate programs, such as veterans service organizations, and through defraying expenses incurred in providing representation to such persons..."

Eligibility

To be eligible, an organization must be either: (1) a non-profit organization that provides free legal assistance to low-income individuals or veterans; or (2) private attorneys or law firms that seek to establish a non-profit organization to provide free legal assistance to low-income individuals or veterans. Eligible organizations must also plan to serve eligible veterans, dependents, or other persons in proceedings before the U.S. Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims (the Court), regardless of their location or residence.

How to Apply

LSC is not currently accepting applications. LSC will release application instructions upon issuing a Notice of Funding Availability.

Reporting, Compliance Requirements & Applicable Law

The Veterans Pro Bono Grant is subject to the authorizing legislation in Public Law 102-229. Grantees must also comply with the requirements in the grant assurances and award documents.

Reporting and Oversight Activities

The Veterans Pro Bono Program Grant recipients are subject to LSC oversight, as specified in the grant assurances. LSC requires the submission of periodic reports of program activity and financial status during the grant period.

Application of LSC Statutes and Regulations to Veterans Pro Bono Grant Funds

The Veterans Pro Bono Program Grant is funded through a congressional appropriation to the Court. LSC administers the grant with funds from the Court, and these funds are not part of LSC’s federal appropriation. Accordingly, this grant is not subject to most restrictions applicable to recipients of LSC’s basic field awards (general, migrant, or Native American). Nonetheless, many LSC requirements regarding the use of funds, oversight, and management apply. LSC specifies which LSC requirements apply through the Veterans Pro Bono Program grant assurances and award documents.

The Veterans Consortium

The Veterans Consortium is a 501(C)(3) nonprofit located in Washington, D.C. The program provides trained attorneys who specialize in representing veterans throughout their process of challenging a BVA denial in front of the U.S. Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims They represent the veterans from the start of submitting their initial appeal throughout each step of the process. The staffing structure is designed to help carry out the specified core activities, which include case screening and referral; training and education for attorneys; and encouragement of pro bono representation. The Veterans Consortium is led by the Executive Director, who reports to the Board of Directors.

For more information regarding The Veterans Consortium, please visit https://www.vetsprobono.org/.

Contact the Veterans Pro Bono Grant Administration

Submit questions about the Veterans Pro Bono Grant.

Email: veteransprobono@lsc.gov

Anais Taboas

Program Counsel,

Pro Bono Innovation and Veterans Grant Administration

Veterans Grant Program