Will USFSPA Protests to Lawyers Bring Change?
When we found the Military on Pinterest, there was an image of USFSPA protests that took place in Las Vegas, Nevada in May 2012.
Eight combat veterans from the nonprofit Veterans advocacy group, Operation Firing For Effect, (OFFE) organized a protest outside the office of attorney Marshall Willick, of Willick Law Group to “raise awareness about former military spouses who want half of the wounded warriors’ disability compensation.”
Harassing lawyers is not the best way to bring attention to the USFSPA. Attorneys don’t make the laws. They propose arguments and uphold what has already been passed by the government. Attorneys don’t make the final decisions, judges do.
Protests don’t belong outside the judges’ offices either. I find the idea that change will come from bullying those upholding the law to be somewhat ridiculous.
Instead what results is exactly what happened:
“Alleging that he received death threats from members of the nonprofit group, Willick fired back with a defamation lawsuit that he had served on the group and its leaders at the rally.”
The event has done nothing for the USFSPA and only resulted in two parties involved in more legal issues.
What do you think? Are these types of protests a good idea? Will they be outside the former spouses’ doors next?
You may also like:
http://willicklawgroup.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/Order-8-25-15-WLG-00098331x7A582.pdf
My ex ran from Virginia because of trouble on his job involving the FBI. He left me holding everything. House note other bills etc.
Was able to receive a divorce even though his testimony was fraudulent from beginning to end. Example: he testified that we were married in 1985 when in fact we were married in 1959, and his military pension was never mentioned. I filed an answer and an appearance, but it was ignored. I did this because I could not afford an attorney in Illinois. So he does not have worry about the USFSPA.
The author of this article didn’t do his/her homework. State legislators make State laws. Most of these legislators are in fact attorneys. So, therefore, lawyers do make the laws for the States. In the case where a State legislator isn’t an attorney, he/she will refer to an attorney to draft the purposed legislation. Whether the author of this article realizes or not, the disabled veterans aren’t paying the court ordered alimony, the American tax payers are. In other words, the money that Americans are paying into the IRS which they think is designated to care for our combat disabled veterans, is in fact being diverted to non-military, able body, ex-spouses and their attorneys in civil courts. The disabled veteran is doing without and suffering the hardship. Everyone in the courtroom winds up with a portion of the disabled veteran’s disability compensation after the judge adds court cost to the equation. It is the perfect scam of federal tax dollars. So, thank you author for not caring how your tax dollars are misused.
Also, I suggest you visit this link to see that Operation Firing For Effect is not alone in this battle.
Mississippi is enforcing the federal laws which protect veteran’s disability compensation, USC, Title 38, 5301. [ Link edited out by Admin. because it is no longer valid, but you can Google for the referred to case: Tonya Mallard v. James Mallard 2012. ]
Re: “State legislators make State laws”
Exactly. People (not one individual) make laws. This protest was not about ‘change’ but about harassing one person for their position on the subject. It’s childlike behavior similar to bullying, and reduces the image of the OFFE to be viewed as a credible professional organization. (We can address Mississippi later. The issue was not the subject being protested, but whether the choice of location would accomplish any change.)