VA Hearings in the Time of COVID: The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly
By Douglas I. Friedman of Friedman Law Firm, P.C.
Tuesday, December 15, 2020
In early 2020, before COVID-19 ended hearings at regional offices, the VA had started a Virtual Hearing program. Virtual Hearings only required a smart-phone and the lawyer and client could be in different places. You didn't have to travel to regional office and the judge presided from his or her office in Washington, DC. Our firm installed the needed equipment to make our conference room into a courtroom and the process really worked great. And then COVID hit.
COVID has caused hearing delays. VA offices are still closed. Fewer people are available to process requests for hearings, to do the scheduling, and to hold the hearings.
The Board of Veterans Appeals is about two years behind in their docket. That means they are taking cases of out storage that are from around October 2018. And that does not take into consideration how long it will take to actually have a hearing after that, nor to have the judge issue a decision after a hearing.
All told, many lawyers think that from the day a request for a hearing is filed with the VA, it will take five years to get a decision.
Hopefully this will change when the pandemic ebbs, and new hires at the Board become more knowledgeable and efficient. But there is no way to tell.
We have been advising clients to choose the type of hearing appeal that they believe will be best for them. We have stopped trying to figure out which type of hearing will be quickest, as the timing aspect could change quickly if the VA changes where to put its employees. So, rather than make a choice based on a crystal ball of “how long,” we usually choose the type of appeal that we think will be best for the client.
If you have questions about this post, feel free to contact us at 205-879-3033 or Lifehealth@FriedmanFirmPC.com.
REMEMBER: Our clients are located all over the U.S., so don't let location be an obstacle-- let us help you!
Our next post will be about the choices to make between the various types of hearings.
Post navigation
VA Rating: What if you cannot work, but your Rating isn't 100%?
So Many Choices for VA Appeals! How to Choose the Right One.