Well, obviously they are getting the thumbscrews tightened down at 810 Penny Lane NW. Having rescinded bonus pay and  golf course dictation and litigation, The VLJs are back at theirs desks hard at work. Rumor has it they have a new production goal of 1.5 cases per day, up from the obligatory one per day instituted by Gen. Shinseki in 2009. There’s still bad blood over that one.

Dissatisfied with the results of the Aspire Training , Accenture ideas brought over from Hickey, Haiku cave painting interpretation and a myriad of other boondoggles that have slowed the conversion process over to electronic format, the VA Secretary is pressing ahead boldly, going blindly in the right direction with little or no cooperation from the hired help. VBMS is the wave of the future. The problem is preventing it from becoming a runaway locomotive that blindly mows down all claims due to premature ejaculation without all the facts and evidence before it. This phenomenon is now just pushing otherwise legitimate claims into the ditch that have been in the pipeline for years in an effort to get the front door attendance figures up.

“ALL IN!” works well with cheerleaders on Friday Night in Denton, Texas. Offering a set of Ginzu Carving Knives free with a bamboo steamer for filing a Fully Developed Claim (FDC) is not going to motivate Vets. Their ills are current, longstanding and genuine. Offering a year of added benefits (read the fine print) is not what motivates us. Speed. Timeliness. Accuracy. Actually erring on the side of caution to the Veteran. Since we’ve never seen this side of VA, we are understandably confused at this sudden showing of good faith.

VA is trying to help Vets by partnering them with pro-bono lawyers in St. Pete and Chicago. I hope that doesn’t speak to VA’s mindset about their geographical IQ. The only thing I see amiss here is that these Law dogs are going to be helping prepare and prep these claims for Vets. They are not currently VA lawyers. They need a crash course in this pronto. By the time any of these guys are worth their salt, this big contrived backlog will have dissipated and the new program will be for naught. Or,… it will be so wildly successful for Veterans that the VA will acknowledge  the concept works and promptly shut it down as not being financially feasible.

Which brings us to another little problem. Current regulations only allow Veterans Service Organizations and their minions to represent Vets. Or, a Vet is free to go it alone. Openly employing attorneys with genuine JDs is shopping trouble. Granted the rules are stacked against us six ways to Sunday, but this munificence and relaxation of the rules almost always is followed by a pleasantly-worded letter telling you why you won’t be cruising on Bucks Boulevard. The mere presence of another in your claim is always given the hairy eyeball-even if its your best friend Ben who ate clay and AO with you at An Loc in 68.

If he’s a Veteran, he can represent you once. No other Vets after that. End of legal career. An attorney can legally enter in after your initial denial at the Regional Office but not before. This instance described, of course, is set in a pro bono scenario but that could all change in a heartbeat if it had to go up to the Court or the Dead Circus. They will not be ready to step into that arena with no training. Much of the time invested in your case will be lost if another has to pick up and take over later. Familiarization is 50% of the claim to me.