Veteran launches review of decision to deny long-term disability benefits

Just help them out! why keep fighting?

http://atlantic.ctvnews.ca/disabled-veteran-dismayed-ottawa-continuing-court-fight-over-benefits-1.2790472

got that right mister

Being the "screwed around road" the lawyer couldn't do simple math, wasting the  judge's time. I was disappointed in the turn out, "some" veterans were there?  
The lawsuit should be about 1. The  Discrimination wounded soldier endure 2. "and" the  willingly miss leading of Veterans .

k Robbie got ya you were included in the initial lawsuit because you applied .

when I spoke with them they told me not to bother applying because of my CPPD and high PA level I would get nothing .

the same as these guys the big difference is they actually listened to these crooks where I said frack em and applied anyway .

so we were included in the lawsuit because we applied and they were not because they listened to the crooks and did not .

and yup we all know this road well and im sure when this thing comes to a head will have some important knowledge for these guys .

propat

It's the only road , us vets, know!

I applied but got a letter stating that the first three payments Totaling 771.31 had to be paid back due to receiving other source income from VAC which ironically I was told to get by SISIP.
So yes I applied but was mislead like everyone else..................so like I said feel like I've been down this road before.

Today's court hearing is about certification of the Law Suit.

Will see what the Judge says.

The government has already released a statement saying they will oppose certification...I guess this government is no different from the previous government.

Disabled veterans fight Ottawa for benefits in class-action suit

Some veterans who say they've been wrongly shut out of disability payments from Ottawa are taking their fight to federal court in Halifax.

McInnes Cooper lawyer Daniel Wallace said about a dozen veterans have come forward, claiming they didn't apply for disability benefits because they were told they were ineligible.

The case involves a three-decade-long federal government practice of clawing back the military pensions of injured soldiers by the amount of disability payments they received.

"The government told each and every member that was being released that their benefits would be zero or close to zero because of this deduction," said Wallace.

Wallace said it is the same flawed formula that has already been proven in federal court. In 2013, the court approved an $887-million settlement for more than 7,000 veterans, with some receiving money dating back to 1976.

Military veteran Fernand Kenney is one of the veterans named in the proposed lawsuit. He's seeking disability payments for post-traumatic stress disorder related to his service in the Bosnian war.

"For Mr. Kenny, it probably is maybe $30,000 to $40,000. So, a life changing amount of money that he should have received when he was released back in 2005," Wallace said.

"These are benefits he paid for throughout his career in case he did get disabled, and unfortunately that's exactly what happened while he was serving during the Bosnian war."

Wednesday's court appearance will see veterans seek to have their class-action certified in court.

Wallace said the Department of National Defence will oppose certification.

http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/nova-scotia/ptsd-veterans-military-ottawa-money-benefits-health-canadian-forces-1.3461503

Robbie did you apply for SISIP and then told you were going to get nothing ????

OR were you told not to apply because you would get nothing and listened to them and NOT apply for SISIP AT ALL ????

this seems to be the difference the way I read it .

it seems if you applied initially whether you got anything or not or weather you continued filling out the annual forms or not you were part of the SISIP lawsuit .

if you never applied AT ALL to SISIP you were not .

propat

Robbie, if you were told not to bother to apply for SISIP after your medical release, because you were getting PA pension, you should be considered part of this class action. I would contact Dan Wallace, and give him your details. Worst case scenario, is you get the two years worth of LTD payments, and best case is you can be fully covered since your release.

So I was in the same boat as these fella's in that I did not qualify for SISIP Benefits (901102), ie: in the form of financial LTD payments because I was told VAC would offset the amount through benefits to equal 75% of earnings at release (PREMISE FOR THE SISIP LAWSUIT), however I accepted their CAR (Coverage After Release) insurance programs being dental and health (FRACKING JOKE BY THE WAY 50% of crap). So like Raggs here is this not the same thing? I know I'm slow but an exclamation mark, a question mark or a period all change the pattern of grammar but where is the semi-colon here?

Never give up the fight.

Veterans challenge denial of disability benefits in latest court battle

HALIFAX -- Some military veterans who say they are so disabled by PTSD that they haven't worked since being released from the Forces will take their fight for long-term benefits to court Wednesday to argue they were wrongly shut out of support payments from Ottawa.
Stephane Hebert, who served in the military for 21 years before being medically released in 2007, is one of about a dozen veterans who have come forward so far as part of the proposed class action suit against the federal government.
Hebert, who served in Yugoslavia in 1992 and was later diagnosed with severe PTSD, said he didn't apply for disability payments because he was told wrongly that he would not be entitled to them.

He claims that when he eventually learned otherwise, federal officials told him he had missed a 120-day deadline.
"I was told I was not entitled to that, so in bouts of anger I just said, 'Yeah, I'll just leave it at that,"' the 48-year-old father said in an interview as he travelled from his home in New Brunswick to Halifax for the certification hearing in Federal Court.
"I had no choice today but to push for this class action for members who have been misled."
Dan Wallace, the lawyer handling the case, said the Forces's insurer led his client and others to believe they would not receive any payments based on calculations that used a formula that takes salary and pensions into account.
But Wallace argues that a previous court ruling in another matter involving veterans' benefits found the formula was flawed and should be overturned, meaning the class should apply for and receive payments.
Fernand Kenney, a veteran who is named in the proposed suit, launched the case last year after he was similarly rejected for disability payments related to post-traumatic stress disorder and his service in Bosnia in 1993.
Kenney claims in a four-page application filed in Federal Court that he was given the wrong information by the insurance provider and, as a result, did not go through a lengthy and costly process of applying for the benefits.
When he did, Kenney was also told he had missed the deadline for applications, even though he was initially told he wouldn't receive any money and shouldn't bother applying.
Wallace said it doesn't make sense that a veteran pays premiums for his full military career and isn't able to collect on them because incorrect information was used from an insurance provider.
"If you know you're going to get zero dollars a month, of course you're not going to go through all the hoops and expenses of filling out all the forms," he said.

"They served for an extended period of time and paid into an insurance benefit and when they needed that benefit, it wasn't there for them."
A Department of Defence spokeswoman was not able to comment on the matter.
Wallace says Kenney, now 57 and living in Quebec, is severely disabled and has not worked since he was involuntarily released from the Forces in 2005. Hebert also says he hasn't worked since his release due to PTSD and physical injuries related to his service.
Wallace didn't know the dollar value of the case, but estimates Kenney and Hebert would stand to receive about $50,000 each.
This latest battle comes after Ottawa settled with about 7,500 claimants in a $887.8-million class-action lawsuit in 2013 over their clawed back pension benefits.
Dennis Manuge launched the suit for veterans whose long-term disability benefits were reduced by the amount of the monthly Veterans Affairs disability pensions they received. The Federal Court said it was unfair of the federal government to treat pain and suffering awards as income.

http://www.ctvnews.ca/canada/veterans-challenge-denial-of-disability-benefits-in-latest-court-battle-1.2789565

yes trooper I agree .

the initial suit opened the door for those that did not file anymore paperwork after the initial 24 months because they were getting nothing .

it did nothing however for those that never even filed the initial paperwork upon release because they were told they would get nothing .

that's what this lawsuit is about.

propat

There is a difference between those of you who are now awaiting results from the adjudicator - and what is taken place with this latest proposed class proceedings brought forward by Mr. Kenney, and Dan Wallace.

I can understand the confusion but will try to point out the differences between the both, in the way I have read the report of the proposed class proceedings.

The ones who are now awaiting results from the adjudicator did apply for sisip upon their release, but did not follow through with the application based on the different factors - these factors have been addressed by the courts - resulting in the court order of the MANUGE Law suit which open the door to allow for the adjudicator to make decisions on each Veteran who falls into this group.

I do believe that in Mr. Kenney's case he did not apply for sisip upon release - after learning of the success of the Law suit - he then proceeded to apply for sisip, and was told by sisip that he had missed the 120-day deadline for applications, therefor was refused benefits.
As far as I know - nothing in the MANUGE suit gave way to those who did not apply for sisip upon release - or within the time frame allotted to apply.
In other words there is nothing in the MANUGE case that was in the court order, that would open the door for the adjudicator for those in Mr. Kenney's position.

This is my understanding of why they have brought forward this latest proposed class proceedings.

Please feel free to jump in to correct any of my understanding of this - as I may have miss read the whole thing.

I am in the same situation as Rags. I did not apply for SISIP benefits because I was told that my VAC income was higher than my SISIP amount which therefore zeroed me out. I did not submit medical reports at the 18th and 24th month during the first two years after my medical release.