Free legal help will be available to veterans

Illinois veterans who need help filing claims for education or health benefits soon will have a new -- and free --support system.

Under an initiative rolled out Wednesday, attorneys across the state will be specially trained to navigate those rough legal waters and then be matched up with interested soldiers to provide one-on-one, pro bono aid.

The endeavor includes the startup of a new and unique Veterans Legal Support Center and Clinic at John Marshall Law School. That center will, among other things, be filled with people who can train lawyers to help veterans, maintain a database of attorneys willing to do the free work and keep up with research and developments addressing veterans' benefits.

The first attorney training session is set for October. About 40 lawyers and law students will be there, and they in turn will train others.

The new effort -- a cooperative initiative among a host of partners, including the law school, the Illinois Supreme Court's Commission on Professionalism, state bar groups and the Illinois Department of Veterans' Affairs -- is not a stance for or against war, but is "about the men and women who have served," center executive director Brian Clauss said.

The idea was the brainchild of four Marshall students, themselves all veterans or soon-to-be military members.

Funding will come from annual registration fees paid by Illinois attorneys to the Commission on Professionalism. The initiative also got a $100,000 boost from the state's Veterans Cash lottery tickets, whose proceeds benefit veterans. LexisNexis, an online information source, also is offering computers and support.

The new clinic likely will begin taking cases in early 2008, Clauss said. Veterans seeking help filing claims can call (312) 427-2737, ext. 346.