Military PEB, MEB, IDES, & VA Disability Appeals
Maneuvering the Integrated Disability Evaluation System Doesn’t Have to Feel Like Maneuvering Under Fire
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IDES Overview
Military Physical Evaluation Boards (PEB)
Joel Pettit Law proudly and skillfully represents Service members of the Navy, Marine Corps, Army, Air Force, and Coast Guard in every phase of the Integrated Disability Evaluation System (IDES).
From Limited Duty (LIMDU) and Medical Evaluation Board (MEB) referral to Informal & Formal Physical Evaluation Board (IPEB & FPEB) hearings and post-FPEB appeals, we have the experience, knowledge, and insight to fashion solutions to overcome any obstacle.
At Joel Pettit Law, we understand that every case is unique, requiring fresh analysis and dynamic thinking. PEB cases are difficult, we don’t pretend to make them easier by shortchanging our clients.
We refuse to use templates or cookie cutter, one-size-fits-all products in our practice. Our clients deserve better!
Impartial Medical Review (IMR) Advisory and Preparation
The MEB publishes its medical analysis and conclusion(s) for each case in Narrative Summary (NARSUM); the Service member has the right to request that an independent medical professional review the NARSUM and comment on its contents.
MEB Advisory
While preparing to determine whether a Service member should be referred to the PEB, the MEB produces documents and opinions that must be reviewed, and often formally challenged, to protect Service members’ rights.
FPEB Hearings
Telephonic or video hearings (in-person only for the USCG) during which Service members and their legal representatives are allowed to present relevant evidence to support any claim related to the condition(s) in question.
Permanent Limited Duty (PLD) Submissions
If you’re found unfit and you need up to three years to reach a milestone or prepare you and your family to leave the military, PLD is a program that can keep you on active duty with accommodations for your disabilities.
IPEB Reconsideration Requests
Once the IPEB rules on a case, most Agencies allow the Service member to submit a brief with supporting evidence to challenge the IPEB’s finding before having to conduct an FPEB hearing.
VA Reconsideration Requests (VARR)
The IPEB may find you unfit, but the VA supplies the disability ratings; a successful VARR can turn a separation into a medical retirement.
Post-FPEB Appeals
These can take the form of written appellate briefs or hearings, challenging legal errors the FPEB made during your hearing.
MEB Report (MEBR) Rebuttals
Service members have the right to challenge the MEB’s final conclusions and recommendations that are summarized in the MEBR.
Line of Duty Benefits (LOD-B) Letters
In most cases, the door to medical retirement for a Reservist can only be opened with an LODB; make sure you have one.
Medical Retention Review (MRR)
Reservist medical review process that can only lead to retention or medical separation, never medical retirement.
Line of Duty (LOD) Investigations
Ensure your wound, illness, or injury is accurately recorded to preserve your rights.
Limited Duty (LIMDU) Appeals
In some cases, LIMDU can be extended over the one-year maximum, helping you avoid the PEB altogether.
Combat Related Special Compensation (CRSC) Appeals
All retirees, regardless of their path, are entitled to CRSC for combat related conditions.
Correcting Military Records
Joel Pettit Law knows no record system on earth is perfect; this doesn’t deter us.
The larger an organization becomes, the more complex its records grow and the harder it is to correct even glaring errors. The Marine Corps, Army, Navy, Air Force, and Coast Guard are some of the largest organizations in the world, and their records are plagued by errors too.
At Joel Pettit Law, we analyze your case, search for records to support your claim through Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests, gather all supporting personal information on our client, draft the underlying petition and rebuttal to the advisory opinions, appear before BCMR, or appeal to the U.S. Court of Federal Claims.
Temporary Disability Retirement List (TDRL)
Joel Pettit Law was founded by one of only three highly skilled PEB lawyers hired for the Navy’s TDRL Unit.
We don’t simply know the TDRL process, we understand the nuances to every step, evaluation, communication, and process that’s involved. When a Service member is retired with an unstable condition, they will undergo medical observation for up to three years before enduring another PEB process.
Despite their names, TDRL IPEBs, FPEBs, and post-FPEB appeals are vastly different from their counterparts that Service members experience during active duty: evidence is more complex, case analysis is more intense, and arguments must be better crafted and presented.
At Joel Pettit Law, we appreciate that our approach to TDRL cases must be different from the approach we take to initial PEB cases; our clients are no longer in the military, their professional and personal lives are more varied, and their medical care is almost never centralized.
There is no “autopilot” mode at Joel Pettit Law. We actively swing for the fences for every client.
Medical Record Retention and Planning
Retaining old and strategically producing new medical records is key to ensuring success at the TDRL IPEB phase.
TDRL Medical Reevaluation Prep
Service members will be required to submit to periodic medical reevaluations as part of the TDRL process; the timing of these reevaluations depends on administrative factors and regulatory requirements attached to the unfitting condition(s) for which the Service member was found unfit.
TDRL IPEB Prep
Creating a legal strategy and corresponding evidence gathering plan, ensuring that the claims, issues, and evidence is submitted to the TDRL IPEB in a way that puts the Service member in the best possible position to succeed without the need for a TDRL FPEB hearing.
TDRL FPEB Hearings
The form of these hearings is identical to the original FPEB hearings, except the issues involved include not only potentially additional unfitting conditions, but also arguing the specific VA disability code and corresponding rating for each unfitting condition.
TDRL Post-FPEB Appeals
These can take the form of written appellate briefs or hearings, challenging legal errors the FPEB made during your hearing.