Military Discharge Upgrade Legal Practice Manual

(Paperback)

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Praise for Military Discharge Upgrade Legal Practice Manual

This book represents in every way the intent of my 2014 PTSD memo instructing a review of less-than-honorable discharges. I hope it will help grow the field of discharge upgrade advocacy so all veterans with unjust or erroneous discharges will have their service to our country recognized. We owe every veteran nothing less.
Chuck Hagel, Secretary of Defense (2013-2015), U.S. Senator (1997-2009), Vietnam Veteran

An Honorable Discharge is a point of great pride and achievement for every veteran and it must remain so. However, there are cases where a service members discharge does not recognize all the factors contributing to conduct, especially the effects of PTSD and other neurological and psychological issues. It is here that the Military Discharge Upgrade Legal Practice Manualprovides a major contribution. It presents a comprehensive and detailed explanation of all aspects of the discharge review process. It allows individuals and their counselors to understand their rights and the procedures necessary to reassess a discharge. The authors have made a valuable contribution to all who have served.
Senator Jack Reed, Rhode Island, Chairman, Senate Armed Services Committee; US Army Veteran

This is one of the rare books that can change lives for much the better. [T]he steps of action and detailed analysis provided here will assist hundreds of thousands of former service members barred from the vital assistance they need to heal and reintegrate into civilian society. Those who have served the country deserve no less.
Martha Minow, 300th Anniversary University Professor, Harvard University

The need for a comprehensive guide to discharge upgrade practice could not be more critical. A 2020 report found that hundreds of thousands of veterans have been, or are at risk of being, unjustly denied benefits because they have received less-than-honorable discharges. Many of these veterans have experienced trauma (including combat trauma and Military Sexual Trauma), mental health conditions or medical conditions (such as Post-Traumatic Stress and Traumatic Brain Injury), or discrimination (based on race, sex, or LGBTQ status) while in the military.

The Manual covers fact investigation, legal research, and case strategy in advocating for discharge upgrades before military review boards. Each representation stage receives detailed attention, from initial intake to administrative proceedings to federal court review.

Author Bio

Margaret Kuzma is an attorney in the Veterans Legal Clinic at the Legal Services Centerof Harvard Law School, where her work focuses on complex discharge upgradepetitions. Previously, she directed the Veterans Inclusion Project and the DischargeUpgrade Practice at the Connecticut Veterans Legal Center. She has been a VisitingClinical Lecturer with the Veterans Legal Services Clinic at Yale Law School, and shecofounded the Veterans Law Project at Quinnipiac University School of Law. Prior tobecoming a public interest attorney, Ms. Kuzma ran the Sexual Assault Preventionand Response Program for Fort Benning and U.S. Army Garrison Baumholder. Betsy Gwin is Associate Director of the Veterans Legal Clinic at the Legal ServicesCenter of Harvard Law School, where she is a Clinical Instructor and Lecturer-on-Law. Her work focuses on representing disabled veterans in appeals to the U.S. Courtof Appeals for Veterans Claims, appeals for state veterans benefits, and dischargeupgrade petitions. Ms. Gwin previously worked in legal services and was a publicdefender, representing parents and children in child welfare proceedings in the Childand Family Law Division of the Massachusetts Committee for Public Counsel Services. Dana Montalto is a Clinical Instructor and Lecturer-on-Law in the VeteransLegal Clinic at the Legal Services Center of Harvard Law School, where her workand teaching focus on representing veterans with less-than-honorable discharges.Ms. Montalto also founded and directs the Veterans Justice Pro Bono Partnership,which connects veterans who wrongfully received less-than-honorable dischargeswith pro bono attorneys. She has written about the legal history of the Departmentof Veterans Affairs eligibility rules for veterans with less-than-honorable dischargesand the challenges veterans with less-than-honorable discharges face inaccessing basic supportive services at VA. Daniel Nagin is a Clinical Professor and Faculty Director of the Veterans LegalClinic and the Legal Services Center of Harvard Law School. He has published journalarticles about the law and policy of veterans benefits and has been a frequent presenter at conferences about legal services for veterans. An elected Fellow ofthe American Bar Foundation, his current activities include serving on the JudicialAdvisory Committee of the U.S. Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims, the LegalServices Corporation Veterans Task Force, and the Executive Committee of theSection on Poverty Law of the American Association of Law Schools.