Turned AwayAn estimated 400,000 former service members are at risk of wrongly being denied VA healthcare and other benefits as a result of receiving a “less than honorable” discharge from the military, according to the 2020 report Turned Away, produced by the Veterans Legal Clinic of the Legal Services Center of Harvard Law School, Veterans Legal Services, and Wilmer, Cutler, Pickering, Hale and Dorr LLP on behalf of OUTVETS.

The report shows that gay and lesbian veterans and victims of military sexual assault are disproportionately at risk of receiving a “less than honorable” discharge, as are veterans who served in the Navy or Marines, the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, and those with post-traumatic stress disorder.

Read the full report here.

If you believe you unfairly received a “less than honorable” discharge or are being unfairly denied veterans’ benefits, below are resources that can help you to learn more about how to right this wrong.

Accessing VA Health Care: A Self-Help Guide for Veterans with Less-Than-Honorable Discharges

Additional Resources

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The Veterans Legal Clinic at the Legal Services Center, represents veterans and their family members when they cannot afford an attorney. Representation focuses on the following areas of law:

  • Appeals at all levels in Federal Veterans’ Benefit cases (including Service-Connected Disability Compensation Benefits, VA Pension, Dependency and Indemnity Compensation Benefits)
  • Appeals at all levels in Massachusetts Veterans’ Services Benefits cases (Chapter 115 cases)
  • Access to VA healthcare and other healthcare resources
  • Discharge upgrades and correction of military records cases
  • Estate planning matters (wills, health care proxies, funeral planning directives, living wills/medical directives, and special needs trusts, guardianships and conservatorships, and VA Fiduciary appointments)

StatesideLegal assists people with military experience by providing them with information and resources to better understand and protect the rights. 

Swords to Plowshares, a San Francisco-based organization that has been fighting for veterans’ rights since 1994, offers detailed self-help guides to educate and empower veterans. For veterans seeking to upgrade their discharge, a step-by-step guide to the discharge upgrade process is available online.

Swords to Plowshares also offers a self-help guide to enable individuals to use the VA’s Character of Discharge (COD) review process to improve the likelihood that they can access VA healthcare services and benefits. The COD process will not change a person’s discharge, i. e. what is written on your DD214, but it can change how the VA treats that person.

For many veterans with bad paper, a successful Character of Discharge review can be an efficient way to gain access to VA healthcare services and benefits.

Connecticut Veterans Legal Center also provides free resources on this topic:

Legal Aid programs specifically for veteransThis resource, also provided by Swords to Plowshares, lists veterans legal aid organizations by state. Legal aid programs provide assistance for free or at greatly reduced rates for those who meet certain income and asset guidelines.

Military Discharge Upgrade Legal Practice ManualFor the first time in 30 years, a new comprehensive guide has been published for advocates representing veterans with less-than-honorable or otherwise stigmatizing discharges. The new Military Discharge Upgrade Legal Practice Manual, published by the American Bar Association, is authored by attorneys Margaret KuzmaDana MontaltoBetsy Gwin, and Daniel Nagin of LSC’s Veterans Legal Clinic, working in collaboration with the Connecticut Veterans Legal Center.

The Manual draws from the expertise of practitioners in the field to provide guidance and practical tips for successfully representing veterans in this complex and growing area of advocacy. This complete desktop reference fills a major gap in the field and provides attorneys with the help they may need to aid former service members who have been denied the title of “veteran” and excluded from veterans’ benefits due to unjust or erroneous discharges from military service.

The Manual covers fact investigation, legal research, and case strategy in advocating for veterans in discharge upgrade petitions to military review boards. Every stage of representation receives detailed attention, from initial client intake to administrative proceedings to federal court review. Development of the Manual was made possible through a grant from the Bob Woodruff Foundation.

To learn more about the manual and to purchase a copy, visit the ABA website.

For Boston-area attorneys who would like to be involved in providing pro bono assistance to veterans,  the Veterans Justice Pro Bono Partnership at the Legal Services Center connects local veterans to private attorneys who want to give back to those who have served in the nation’s defense.

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