Case Studies
- Helping lenders serve a growing industry: environmental services
- Outsourcing legal remedies: Lear Corporation depends on Bodman
- Retaining a critical asset: Detroit Medical Center fights to keep the Karmanos Cancer Institute
- Relieving debt for a Korean War veteran
- Advancing the development of an artificial lung
- Setting a new precedent with an innovative labor agreement
- Marrying an auto-industry pioneer to a Japanese suitor
- Helping the homeless solve their legal impediments
Relieving debt for a Korean War veteran
When the Veterans Administration (VA) informed Ronald K., a Korean War veteran, that he was required to repay the agency more than $27,000 received in disability benefits, he was devastated. Ronald, a recent cancer survivor, was caring for a disabled son. His Social Security check did not cover his mounting medical bills and the VA had begun docking his monthly payment to settle the debt.
Bodman attorney Christopher Bernard, a veteran himself, investigated the VA’s claim. Bernard discovered that the debt was not Ronald’s fault, but the result of a lack of coordination between the VA and the Social Security Administration. After pursuing certain administrative avenues, Bernard was able to arrange for the discharge of the debt and restoration of Ronald’s full monthly benefit payment. The news changed Ronald’s economic circumstances and delighted Bernard.
There are some things only lawyers can do.