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CLE Training-Serving Those Who Have Served: Legal Representation of Veterans

- Location -
New York Hilton
1335 Avenue of the Americas
Murary Hill Suite A - Second Floor
New York, NY
(518) 487-5641

Special Committee on Veterans Affairs Presents

Serving Those Who Have Served: Legal Representation of Veterans

Click here to download registration form

5.0 credits hours in Professional Practice and 1.0 credit hours in Ethics. Under New York’s MCLR rule, this program has been approved for all attorneys, including newly admitted. 

More than 1 million veterans call New York State home. These extraordinary Americans have many of the same civil legal needs that many of your clients face. From family law issues to consumer debt and credit issues, foreclosure, evictions, etc.  This day-long program will prepare attorneys to represent veterans by providing attendees with invaluable insight into the culture of veterans - from their military experience, to physical and psychological issues faced by veterans, including post traumatic stress, traumatic brain injury and homelessness. The program also will address ethical issues that may arise in case representation, introduce attendees to the veterans’ benefits claim process and acquaint attorneys with veterans’ courts and veteran court mentors. Information about the free civil legal services available to qualifying veterans and their family through legal services organizations and some local bar associations will be provided.

The $125 CLE fee will be waived for attorneys who agree to represent a veteran pro bono in a civil legal matter referred through an identified bar association program, volunteer lawyers project, veterans clinical program, or legal services provider.  The Annual Meeting general registration fee of $85, however, is applicable.

9:00am - 9:30am      Registration

9:30am - 9:50am      Continental Breakfast

9:50am - 10:00am    Introduction and Overview by Co-Chairs

10:00am - 10:05am  Welcome Remarks Vincent E. Doyle III, President NYSBA

10:05am – 11:05am  Understanding Military Culture and Its Impact on Veterans’ Legal Needs

Panel discussion led by experienced clinicians and attorneys about military culture (i.e., chain of command, cohesion/troop unity, combat, attitudes about weakness, etc.) PTSD, TBI, depression and their impact on providing effective legal representation to veterans. 

Moderator:  Karen Hennigan, Esq., Co-Chair, NYSBA Special Committee on Veterans Affairs

Panelists:  

Tina Atherall, Executive Vice President, Hope For The Warriors^®
Carol Davidson, Director, Samaritan Village, Inc.
Col. Charles M. Grinnell, 7^th Legal Support Operation
John G. Powers, Esq., Hancock Estabrook LLP

11:05am – 12:05am   Ethical Issues that May Arise in Representation of Veterans 

This presentation will examine some of the ethical issues that may arise in representing veterans.

Speaker:  Pery D. Krinsky, Esq., Krinsky PPLC

12:05am – 12:15pm  Break

12:15pm – 12:45pm  Understanding Veterans Rights Under USERRA

The Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act gives members of the military a five year window to return to their civilian jobs if they have to leave for military service.  An experienced attorney will discuss veterans’ rights under the Act.

Speaker:  Greg T. Rinckey, Esq., Tully Rinckey PLLC

12:45pm - 1:45pm  Keynote Luncheon Speaker Retired Lieutenant General Jack L. Rives

1:45pm – 3:15pm  A Primer on Veterans Benefit Claims 

Discussion lead by an attorney knowledgeable in veterans benefit claims issues to discuss available benefits and provide overview of the benefits claim process. 

Speaker:  Katrina J. Eagle, Esq.

3:15pm – 4:15pm  An Introduction to Veterans Courts and Veteran Court Mentors  

Panel discussion lead by veterans’ court judge and a mentor to provide overview and introduction to attendees about veterans’ court model, including a discussion about some of the support services provided by the VA.

Moderator:  Michael C. Lancer, Esq., Co-Chair, NYSBA Special Committee on Veterans Affairs

Panelists:  

Hon. Robert T. Russell, Jr., Judge, Buffalo Veterans Treatment Court
Jack O’Connor, Coordinator-Mentors, Buffalo Veterans Treatment Court

4:15pm- 4:25pm - Break

4:25pm- 5:30pm  Overview of Legal Services for Veterans Provided by Legal Services Organizations and Bar Associations 

Panel discussion about existing free or low cost civil legal services provided by not-for-profit legal programs and county bar associations for veterans and their families. 

Panelists:  

Carol Bockner, Director of Pro Bono Initiatives, City Bar Justice Center
Ellen C. Schell, Counsel/Director of Military Families Project, The Legal Project
John G. Powers, Esq., Hancock Estabrook LLP
Lillian M. Moy, Esq., Executive Director, Legal Aid Society of Northeastern NY
Daniel T. Campbell, Esq.,  Law Offices of Campbell & Associates PC
Timothy J. Fennell, Esq., Amdursky Pelky Fennell & Wallen PC

Karen R. Hennigan, Esq.
Committee Co-Chair                                                                                                                                                
Brooklyn, NY 

Michael C. Lancer
Committee Co-Chair
Buffalo, NY                                                                                          

Training Subcommittee Chair
Hon. Charles Heffernan (Retired)
Staten Island, NY

Panelists

Tina Atherall, Hope For The Warriors^®, New York, NY

Tina Atherall , LMSW, is the Executive Vice President and founding member of Hope for the Warriors^® a national non-profit that provides services to active duty military, veterans and their families.  Ms. Atherall is a spouse of an active duty US Marine and has worked 20 years in the military family network advocating and supporting military members and their  families.   Additional background information will be provided in the course materials.

Carol Bockner, City Bar Justice Center, New York, NY

Ms. Bockner is the Director of Pro Bono Initiatives for the City Bar Justice Center.  She currently oversees The Veterans Advocacy Legal Project which assists veterans with disability claims before the Veterans Administration.  Additional background information will be provided in the course materials.

Daniel T. Campbell, Esq., Campbell & Associates, Floral Park, NY

Mr. Campbell has over 31 years of experience in all aspects of employment law with a concentration in employee benefits. Mr. Campbell is also a veteran, having served with the United States Army Security Agency in Berlin, Germany.  Additional background information will be provided in the course materials.

 Carol Davidson, LCSW, CASAC, Veterans Services for Samaritan Village, New York, NY

Ms. Davidson has been working in the field of addictions and recovery since 1975. At Samaritan Village she contributed to the development of an innovative treatment model for military veterans with chemical dependency, mental health issues, combat trauma, and other life problems. Additional background information will be provided in the course materials.

Katrina J. Eagle, Esq.,   San Diego, CA

Ms. Eagle has extensive experience representing veterans and their family members nationwide in a wide variety of issues involving benefits entitlements provided by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs.  She also has considerable experience training veteran service officers, attorneys, and other veterans' advocates in assisting veterans with their claims and appeals for VA service-connected benefits, and is the immediate past President of NOVA, the National Organization of Veterans' Advocates.  Additional background information will be provided in the course materials.

Timothy J. Fennell, Esq., Amdursky Pelky Fennell & Wallen PC, Oswego, NY

Mr. Fennell is a long time member of the NYSBA LRIS Committee as well as a Past Chair. He also served on the ABA Standing Committee on Lawyer Referral.  Mr. Fennell chairs the Legal Services Subcommittee of the Special Committee on Veterans Affairs.  Additional background information will be provided in the course materials.

Col. Charles M. Grinnell, 7^th Legal Support Organization, Albany, NY

Col. Grinnell has served four tours of duty in Iraq and was a Senior Consultant between the Coalition Forces and the Iraqi Government Commission on Public Integrity.  On his last tour he supervised a unit that worked with Iraqi judicial officials to prosecute over 3000 terrorist, insurgents, members of Al-Qaeda and Iraqi criminal organizations.   Additional background information will be provided in the course materials.

Karen Hennigan, Esq., US Attorney Office EDNY, Brooklyn, NY 

Ms. Hennigan, an Assistant United States Attorney for the Eastern District of New York specializing in money laundering and financial crimes, is the Co-Chair of the NYSBA Special Committee on Veterans Affairs.  A commissioned officer in the United States Air Force, she served as an active duty Judge Advocate until 2005.  Additional background information will be provided in the course materials.

Pery D. Krinsky, Esq., Krinsky PPLC, New York, NY

Mr. Krinsky is in private practice in New York City, where his ethics-based defense litigation practice focuses on, among other things, federal and state attorney ethics matters; federal and state criminal defense matters, and representing suspended and disbarred lawyers in reinstatement matters.  Additional background information will be provided in the course materials.

Michael C. Lancer, Esq., Rupp Base Pfalzgraf Cunningham & Coppola LLC

Mr. Lancer served as a U.S. Army officer for 10 years.  Since leaving the service at the rank of major, Mr. Lancer has devoted much of his time to serving veterans and their families in a volunteer capacity.  He is a team captain in the mentor program associated with Buffalo’s ground-breaking Veterans Treatment Court, and currently serves as Co-chair of NYSBA’s Special Committee on Veterans.  Additional background information will be provided in the course materials.

Lillian Moy, Esq., Legal Aid Society of Northeastern New York, Albany, NY

Ms. Moy is the Executive Director of the Legal Aid Society of Northeastern New York. She is a former member of the Board of the National Legal Aid & Defender Association and past Chair of NLADA’s Civil Policy Group.  Ms. Moy is a member of the ABA’s Standing Committee on Legal Aid and Indigent Defense (SCLAID) and participated on the SCLAID Task Force which revised the ABA Standards for Providers of Civil Legal Aid to the Poor.   Additional background information will be provided in the course materials.

Jack O’Connor, Buffalo Veterans Treatment Court, Buffalo, NY

Mr. O’Connor is a Vietnam Infantry veteran having served in the 82^nd Airborne Division.  He is  the former director of Medicaid in Buffalo NY and currently is a Member of the Buffalo VA Advisory Board.

John G. Powers, Esq., Hancock Estabrook LLP, Syracuse, NY

Mr. Powers is a partner with the Syracuse New York firm of Hancock Estabrook LLP. He also volunteers as the Director of the Veteran’s Pro Bono Legal Clinic sponsored by the Onondaga County Bar Association and is a veteran. Additional background information will be provided in the course materials.

Greg T. Rinckey, Esq., Tully Rinckey PLLC, Albany, NY

Mr. Rinckey served as an attorney with the U.S. Army Judge Advocate General’s Corps and is now the Managing Partner of Tully Rinckey PLLC where he concentrates his practice on military law, federal employment and discrimination litigation, and national security clearance mitigation.   Additional background information will be provided in the course materials.

Hon. Robert T. Russell, Jr., Veterans Treatment Court, Buffalo, NY

Judge Robert Russell is an Associate Judge for Buffalo City Court and serves by appointment, as an Acting Erie County Court Judge. In January of 2008, he created and began presiding over the Country’s first “Veterans’ Treatment Court”.  Additional background information will be provided in the course materials.

Jack L. Rives, Executive Director, American Bar Association, Chicago, Il.

Mr. Rives began serving as the Executive Director and Chief Operating Officer of the American Bar Association on Law Day (May 1), 2010. Prior to joining the ABA, Mr. Rives served as The Judge Advocate General of the United States Air Force, where he was the first military attorney to serve in three-star rank as a lieutenant general.  He also served as legal adviser to the secretary of the Air Force and all officers and agencies of the Department of the Air Force.  Additional background information will be provided in the course materials.

Ellen C. Schell, Esq., The Legal Project, Albany, NY

Ms. Schell is Counsel to The Legal Project and Director of The Legal Project’s Military Families Program. She provides technical assistance and training for attorneys who represent military-connected victims of intimate partner violence in civil legal matters.  Additional background information will be provided in the course materials.

Accommodations for Persons with Disabilities:
NYSBA welcomes participation by individuals with disabilities. NYSBA is committed to complying with all applicable laws that prohibit discrimination against individuals on the basis of disability in the full and equal enjoyment of its goods, services, programs, activities, facilities, privileges, advantages, or accommodations. To request auxiliary aids or services or if you have any questions regarding accessibility, please contact the New York State Bar Association at 800-582-2452 or dharrington@nysba.org.