Noteboom The Law Firm

Deadline For Sabo v. United States Opt-In Extended

August 24, 2010 - Sabo v. United States, is a class action lawsuit that was brought on behalf of Operation Enduring Freedom and Operation Iraqi Freedom (OEF/OIF) veterans who feel they did not receive the separation benefits they deserved. The lawsuit seeks to recover money for those veterans suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) rooting from the current wars in the Middle East.

U.S. Court of Federal Claims Judge George W. Miller extended the deadline for which veterans who served in Iraq or Afghanistan can join the lawsuit. If a veteran does not join, or opt-into, the lawsuit by November 10, 2010, that veteran is forever barred from joining the suit. If the lawsuit is successful, the veterans who opted-in could have their disability ratings raised. That would mean those veterans and their families would likely receive increased health care.

About 1,835 veterans have already opted-in to the lawsuit. There are at least another 2,623 veterans who meet the requirements to become class members. In order to qualify for the class action lawsuit, veterans:

• Must have served on active duty in the U.S. Army, Navy, Marine Corps, or Air Force;
• Must have been found unfit for continued service due, or at least in part, to PTSD by a Physical Evaluation Board;
• Must have been assigned a disability rating of less than 50% for PTSD;
• Must have been released, separated, retired, or discharged from active duty after December 17, 2002 and prior to October 14, 2008 (regardless of whether the individual was placed on the Temporary Disability Retirement List because of the type of their release).

It is unknown how this suit will be affected by the Department of Veterans Affairs' (VA) new "relaxed" rules for finding PTSD disability. Over 1/3 of all the veterans who qualify to be part of the class are severely disabled.