Where can I get free help with legal questions?
I have so many legal questions and I don't have the money to hire someone. My husband walked into the VA hospital for a medication change. Next thing I know is he is in a locked room on the floor with just a mattress and dried vomit all over him. He then had bruises all over his back, stomach and arms with a broken hip. He has gone downhill very fast. I care for him alone 24/7/365. Before this happened we were able to go to the store, park, etc. Now he is completely bedbound with a feeding tube and is not expected to live much longer. I can't transport him now or anything. This has caused a great hardship on me. Yet, they promise this and that and never come through. I don't know how much abuse he took because they won't tell me anything and I had made 2 appts with the head nurse on that floor and she never called or showed up. Everything is a mess. We have been married for many years and have no family. I promised to never to put him in a nursing home so that is not an option. I don't trust anyone anymore. I tried a caregiver so that I could at least get my meds and go to the store and they stole me blind. Now it is all up to me. We have lost everything over his Alzheimer's and now this.
Expert Answer
There are several places you might contact to get legal help. You may even be able to find a lawyer who will help you without being paid right away. Many lawyers take cases based on what's called a "contingency fee." That means they don't ask for any money at the beginning of the case. Instead, they wait to get paid out of the money they win for a client. If they don't win anything, the client doesn't have to pay. But it's not always easy to get a lawyer to take a contingency fee case. That's because a lawyer usually only takes a case for a contingency fee if he or she thinks there's a good chance of winning.
One place to start is your local county bar association. It's listed in the phone directory white pages. Call them and ask to speak to their referral service. They will then ask you what type of case you are calling about. Tell them it has to do with poor treatment your husband received at the VA. They will then give you the names and phone numbers of several lawyers in your area who might handle that type of case. You then have to contact those lawyers and discuss the case with them.
You can also get in touch with an association of lawyers who specialize in legal problems of the elderly. It is called the National Association of Elder Law Attorneys . They can put you in touch with lawyers near you who handle the kind of problem you and your husband have faced.
Finally, you might contact a veterans association. If your husband was active in any particular veterans group, contact them. If you don't know of any particular veterans group he was active with, you can search for a local veterans group near you by using an Internet search engine and in the search field typing in the name of the city you live in (or the large city that is nearest to where you live) and the words "veterans association."