After serving their country, veterans are entitled to depend on the Department of Veterans Affairs (“VA”) for healthcare, necessary disability compensation, and other essential support. But far too many veterans are wrongly denied benefits even when they meet eligibility requirements—often because of bureaucratic errors, misapplied regulations, or inadequate consideration of service‑connected conditions. The consequences can be severe, leaving veterans without critical resources and forcing them to navigate a confusing and burdensome appeals process alone. Through our pro bono practice, Gibson Dunn attorneys can make a decisive difference for veterans forced through this process. We help veterans challenge improper denials, secure fair review of their claims, and obtain the care and compensation needed to live healthy, safe, and stable lives.
One of our clients served honorably in the U.S. Navy from 2003 to 2007. His service caused him to develop serious medical conditions, including a back injury that was determined to be service connected. Despite this, the VA denied his claim for benefits in connection with nerve pain in his legs related to his back injury. After the Board of Veterans’ Appeals upheld that denial, Gibson Dunn filed an appeal with the U.S. Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims (“CAVC”). Based on our briefing alone, the VA conceded our argument and agreed to file a joint motion to remand our client’s case to the Board for further consideration without the need to proceed further. Ultimately, after spending months developing a factual record, including an independent medical report used to support our arguments, we persuaded the VA to grant our client’s benefits claim—a life-changing result for our client.
Another client served a combined ten years in the U.S. Army and National Guard, assigned to duties that required him to regularly work with heavy artillery, firearms, and tanks. He often did this work without protective headgear or even ear plugs. This led to a persistent ringing in his ears and hearing loss that has gotten progressively worse since exiting the military. Although he was able to obtain benefits for the ringing in his ears, the VA denied him benefits for his hearing loss—reasoning that he had not established his service was the ultimate cause of the disability. The Board of Veterans Appeals upheld this decision. A Gibson Dunn team appealed the Board’s decision to the CAVC. Our briefing convinced the VA to forego additional merits briefing in favor of agreeing to a remand with instructions consistent with that briefing.
In yet another case, a Gibson Dunn team successfully represented an 87-year-old veteran in connection with his veterans benefits appeal, resulting in the veteran receiving tens of thousands of dollars in backpay and an additional $2,000 in monthly benefits going forward. The veteran, who served in the Army, had previously been awarded a 100% disability rating for his service-connected neurocognitive behavior. In 2022, the VA unilaterally reduced the veteran’s disability rating to 50%. Gibson Dunn successfully negotiated with the VA to agree to remand the veteran’s claim because the VA had not provided an adequate statement of the reasons for its decision. Gibson Dunn continued to represent the veteran on remand and persuaded the VA to grant the veteran a new disability rating equivalent to a 100% rating.
In some cases, veterans face such debilitating injuries that they are unable to care for themselves. In these cases, we have been honored to help our clients obtain additional, life-changing compensation. For example, a Gibson Dunn team helped Mr. O, a Gulf War Navy Veteran, obtain VA benefits after nearly two years of advocacy. Our client suffers from significant service-related injuries that render him unable to perform activities of daily living, but he was receiving very limited benefits and living on a shoestring budget. Following multiple appeals and hearings, our team persuaded the VA to increase our client’s disability rating from 70% to 100%, to grant a special monthly compensation for his caregiver spouse under the Aid & Attendance Program, and to provide assistance through the Dependents’ Educational Assistance program. These decisions more than tripled the amount of benefits our client and his family will receive each month. Notably, the benefits were also paid retroactively, resulting in a lump sum of previously withheld benefits.
