Friday, November 11th is Veterans Day! In honor of our Texas veterans, we’d like to point out some legal resources available especially for veterans.

History of Veterans Day

Veterans Day originally began as Armistice Day, which was first observed in November 1919 to mark the end of World War I. In 1954, the holiday was officially expanded to honor U.S. veterans of all wars. The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs has more about the holiday’s history on its website.

Legal Assistance

Veterans often face unique legal challenges, but luckily there are various organizations in Texas that can help veterans and their families.

Veterans who need assistance with basic civil legal issues or military have several free or low-cost options in Texas:

• Texas Legal Services Center (TLSC)’s Texas Veterans Legal Assistance Project can help veterans and their dependents with everything from discharge upgrades to estate planning at no cost. See TLSC’s website for more information about participating in this program.
• The Texas Lawyers for Texas Veterans project is a series of free legal clinics held by local bar associations throughout Texas. Check the calendar posted on the State Bar of Texas’s website for dates, times, and registration info for these clinics.
• Lone Star Legal Aid’s Military and Veterans Unit offers free civil legal services to qualifying veterans, their dependents, and their spouses on a variety of issues like child custody and support, housing rights, and more. Lone Star Legal Aid’s website has more details about the application process.

Hotlines for Veterans

Depending on your needs, there are also several hotlines available to help veterans:

• The Veterans Crisis Line was created to connect veterans in crisis with free confidential mental health care and assistance 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. The hotline is available by phone, text, or chat:
  • To call: dial 988 and then press 1
  • To text: send a message to 838255 on your phone
  • To chat: Visit https://www.veteranscrisisline.net/get-help-now/chat/
• The National Call Center for Homeless Veterans can help veterans who are homeless or at risk of homelessness by connecting them with local services and resources. Friends and family of veterans at risk are welcome to call. The hotline is available via phone or chat 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
  • To call: dial 1-877-424-3838 and press 1
  • To chat: visit https://www.veteranscrisisline.net/get-help-now/chat
• The Women Veterans Call Center can help provide resources and information to women veterans and their families. Please see their website for hours and availability.
  • To call: dial 1-855-829-6636
  • To chat: visit http://www.womenshealth.va.gov/

 Please visit the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs page on mental health for an additional list of hotlines and resources.

Library Resources

To start, consider reviewing our guide to veterans’ resources to find information about state and federal laws that affect veterans and the legal resources available to them.

We also have several titles in our library’s collection written for veterans or attorneys assisting veterans:

Veterans Benefits Manual

Applying for benefits with the Department of Veterans Affairs can be an arduous affair. This detailed guide is written to help with the process. The e-book includes an overview of different benefits programs, eligibility requirements, claim applications, appeals processes, sample forms, charts, practical information, valuable insight and analysis, and more.

Legal Guide for Military Families

This compact and practical guide offers a summary of areas of law commonly relevant to veterans, service members, and their families. It includes many helpful tips for getting started and links to additional resources. Areas covered include family law, financial debt, housing and landlord/tenant issues, motor vehicle sales, wills and estate planning, health insurance, employment rights, military discharge, disability issues, and veterans’ benefits.

Military Law in a Nutshell

This title serves as an introduction to military law and justice, including an overview of military law history, enlistment and discharge procedures, the criminal justice system and courts-martial, and the rights of the servicemembers. The 2022 edition also includes a new section that addresses benefits access for veterans who have received “bad paper discharges.”

We’re happy to answer any questions you may have or help point you in the right direction, so feel free to reach out to us directly. Happy Veterans Day!