What is Project SALUTE

What is Project SALUTE?

Project  SALUTE of the University of Detroit Mercy (UDM) School of Law is on a unique mission: hit the highways to provide priceless legal advice to low income veterans for free and teach students the invaluable lesson of using the law to serve. The UDM students involved in Project  SALUTE see in a very real way how the law can be used to assist persons in need.  This training and experience inculcate in many students a desire to pursue lifelong pro bono service as part of their legal career.  Many students involved in Project  SALUTE are volunteering after completing the veterans benefit law class and even after they are graduated from the UDM School of Law.

Since February 2008, students, faculty and staff of Project  SALUTE have toured Michigan and the country in a 31-foot Mobile Law Office (MLO), custom designed, built and generously donated by the General Motors Corporation.  During the first year, Project  SALUTE’s MLO travelled more than 35,000 miles to 22 cities in 13 states. In this classroom-on-wheels, UDM School of Law students experience a higher level of hands-on training than any other law school currently offers.  Along the way, Project  SALUTE is also developing a national network of Pro bono Attorneys to provide free legal services to the men and women who have served their country and now need assistance with their Federal Veterans’ Disability and Pension Benefits claim.

Director of Clinical Programs
Michael C. Bryce
J.D. University of Detroit Mercy '77
B.A. Fordham University '72

A 1977 graduate of UDM School of Law, Professor Bryce first worked as an attorney with Union County Legal Services in New Jersey, handling public interest cases.  He later did environmental legal work with the New Jersey Public Advocate's office, specifically working on exclusionary zoning cases.

In 1982, Professor Bryce became an AAG with the New York Attorney General's office and eventually worked on the nine-month Love Canal Environmental Trial for punitive damages. While working with the AG's office he also began to teach as an adjunct for Columbia University, teaching environmental law to doctoral candidates in Public Health. Subsequently, Professor Bryce joined the faculty at St. John's University School of Law, where he initiated their first law clinic program.

In 1999, he became the Division Director for the Environmental Division of the New Mexico Attorney General's office where he worked on numerous environmental cases and legislation. Professor Bryce then returned to UDM in 2001 as a professor. He has since overseen the work and expansion of UDM’s clinical opportunties.

In addition to work at the law school, Professor Bryce is on the Board of the Michigan Irish Society of Lawyers and a member of the Catholic Lawyers Society of Michigan.

Director of Project SALUTE
Tammy M. Kudialis
LL.M. Stetson University College of Law
J.D. University of Detroit Mercy School of Law
B.A. Concordia University

Tammy Kudialis is the director of Project SALUTE, a regional and national traveling veterans’ law clinic designed to assist indigent veterans with their federal benefits claims while providing law students with practical legal training and pro bono attorneys with the opportunity to serve those who have served.

At the direction of Ms. Kudialis, Project SALUTE makes numerous stops throughout Michigan providing educational presentations and individual consultations to veterans.  Project SALUTE also conducts free training seminars on the Basics of Veterans Disability and Pension Benefits to attorneys who agree to provide free representation to a veteran in need of assistance with their federal benefits claim.  To date, Project SALUTE has a pro bono panel of 149 Michigan attorneys, the majority of whom are currently working on a veteran’s federal benefits case for free.  Nationally, Project SALUTE has visited 34 cities in 17 states, San Juan Puerto Rico and Washington DC, counseled more than 2,600 veterans and developed a pro bono panel of 800 attorneys providing free representation to veterans with federal benefits claims in their home states.

In addition to her duties as director, Ms. Kudialis travels extensively with Project SALUTE supervising intake clinics and attorney trainings. As part of her LL.M. degree, she had the opportunity to study veterans’ law with the Honorable Robert N. Davis of the United States Court of Appeals of Veterans Claims.  Ms. Kudialis is admitted to practice before the Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims, is a member of the Court’s Bar Association and a member of the National Organization of Veterans Advocates. 

Prior to becoming the director of Project SALUTE, Ms. Kudialis practiced elder law and worked as an adjunct faculty member with UDM’s Urban Law Clinic.  She provided numerous educational trainings for senior citizens, and was a frequent lecturer on elder law issues.  She currently sits on the Board of Directors of a Detroit area Senior Citizens Center, and is an adjunct faculty member at Central Michigan University. Before attending law school she was a Human Resources manager.

Faculty
The faculty working with Project SALUTE are attorneys trained by the National Organization of Veterans Advocates (NOVA) and admitted to practice before the U.S. Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims. Working with the faculty and attorneys are students enrolled in UDM's Veterans Law Clinic, a law school course in which students receive two hours per week of classroom training in veterans law, and 12 hours per week or more assisting clients under the supervision of faculty attorneys. Most students far exceed the 12 hour minimum requirements. Each week, different students travel to the Project SALUTE location and spend the week working with veterans in that area.

Margaret Costello
B.S. Pennsylvania State University
M.A. Southern Illinois University
M.A. University of Michigan
J.D. Detroit College of Law

An experienced trial lawyer and licensed psychologist, Professor Costello's practice focuses on litigation, dispute resolution and appeals, including bankruptcy and international litigation. In addition to advocating in U.S. courts, she successfully has presented cases before the U.S.-Iran Claims Tribunal and the Albanian Claims Commission, and also has advocated claims before the I.C.C. International Court of Arbitration. Ms. Costello chairs Dykema's Diversity Committee, and is past chair of the firm's Pro Bono Committee.

Joon Sung
J.D. Boston College '94
B.A. University of Michigan '91

Prior to coming to UDM, Professor Sung worked as the Managing Attorney in the Civil Division of Legal Aid and Defender Association, where he specialized in housing and consumer law.

He represented victims of lending scams and assisted in drafting legislation to stop abusive lending practices.

While at LADA Professor Sung also established and led Legal Aid for Children at Children’s Hospital of Michigan, a program to remove legal barriers that adversely affect the health of sick children through direct representation and systemic advocacy.
He has in the past been a frequent trainer on advocacy skills for legal services attorneys at national and regional levels.

Clinical Program Mission Statement
The University of Detroit Mercy School of Law has pioneered a Veterans Law Clinic and Project SALUTE to address the compelling legal needs of veterans. The programs focus on Veterans Federal Disability and Pension Benefits matters through education, law student representation, and pro bono attorney referral.

Classroom Component
Law 520: Veterans Clinic
Credits: 4
Prerequisite(s): Law (Prerequisite: 30 Credit Hours, Evidence and Trial Practice suggested)

Students participating in the Veterans Clinic work on disability cases for veterans. The work includes interviewing potential clients and going out with Project SALUTE to not only interview, but also conduct educational presentations for veterans about their benefits. Cases include representing clients at the various levels of administrative and judicial forums. This course includes a two hour class each week and 12 office hours that must be met during the week. The office hours include the work done outside the office.

Practical Training
The Veterans Law Clinic represents low- and moderate-income veterans with their Veterans Federal Disability and Pension Benefits claims before the Department of Veterans Affairs, Board of Veterans Appeals and Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims. Under the supervision of the clinic faculty, students interview clients, draft briefs, and argue claims. Through Project SALUTE, students and faculty speak to veterans throughout Michigan and across the nation, by conducting educational presentations and individual veterans’ interviews with clients in need of assistance with Veterans’ Federal Disability and Pension Benefits matters. Project SALUTE also trains and continues to establish a network of private attorneys who agree to represent veterans with their Federal Disability and Pension Benefits claims free of charge.

The UDM students involved in Project  SALUTE see in a very real way how the law can be used to assist persons in need.  This training and experience inculcate in many students a desire to pursue lifelong pro bono service as part of their legal career.  Many students involved in Project  SALUTE volunteer after completing the veterans benefit law class and even after they  graduate.

Presentation and Length of Consultation

Each Project SALUTE visit begins with a short presentation about available federal veterans' benefits, how to apply for them and the process to appeal a denial. Veterans wanting additional assistance may request an individual consultation--interview-- with trained UDM Law students and expert faculty versed in the intricacies of federal verterans benefit law. These one-on-one sessions provide more than the basic information necessary to decide how to proceed with a case.

Project SALUTE exposes students to real people with real problems and challenges them to fine tune fact-finding and interpersonal communication skills that classrooms and textbooks simply cannot provide. Students walk away, determined to find a remedy for a veteran. Veterans frequently express their appreciation that someone is finally listening to, and caring about, their situations. The interview sessions, lasting from 15 to 30 minutes, have provided direction for many veterans.

Project SALUTE may seek remedies for Michigan veterans by accepting their cases for representation by UDM's Veterans Law Clinic. Project SALUTE may seek remedies for veterans whom they meet from other states by referring them to local free attorneys in their area.

What to Bring

The Veterans Clinic and Project SALUTE recommend that a veteran bring the Certificate of Release or Discharge from Active Duty--DD Form 214--and any other documents pertinent to evaluating a federal veterans' benefits case.

Program Guidelines

Some veterans who interview with Project SALUTE may be referred to attorneys willing to prepresent them for free. In order to ensure the highest quality assistance for veterans represented by these attorneys, UDM School of Law offers a free full-day training session to attorneys on the basics of handling a federal veterans benefits claim. These sessions along the tour route, or now via the Web, may be eligable for continuing legal education credits in invdividual states. In addition, Project SALUTE is developing cooperative relationships with service organizations in many cities and referring cases (including initial application cases) to these service officers for assistance.

A veteran’s case is placed with a pro bono attorney at the sole discretion of Project SALUTE. A placement determination is based on legal analysis and income eligibility for the Project SALUTE program.  Project SALUTE follows the poverty guidelines as issued each year in the Federal Register by the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS).  The full text of the Federal Register notice with the 2009 poverty guidelines is available at http://aspe.hhs.gov/POVERTY/09poverty.shtml.  Project SALUTE operates at the 200 percent annual income level which means that total household income for the number of persons in the family must be at or below the amount indicated on the following chart:

Please note that Project SALUTE does NOT guarantee placement with a pro bono attorney.

Project SALUTE is creating a national network of pro bono attorneys to assist low-income veterans with their Veterans Federal Disability and Pension Benefits matters.

Please join Project SALUTE for a FREE attorney training webinar on the Basics of Veterans Disability Law.  From the comfort of your own office, you will learn the process of representation before the VA, claims procedures, basic eligibility for VA benefits, disability compensation, dependency and indemnity compensation and pension.  Additionally, the webinar will discuss methods of obtaining evidence in support of a claim and how to appeal a claim denial at the Board of Veterans Appeals and the Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims.  Attorneys will also learn effective advocacy strategies for dealing with the Veterans Administration system, as well as information on recent developments in Veterans Law. 

In exchange for the FREE training webinar, attorneys are asked to provide pro bono legal representation to at least one prescreened income eligible veteran through Project SALUTE.  Every effort will be made to provide an attorney with a client residing within his/her state.  However, Veterans Benefits Law is a national practice and many veterans are represented by attorneys who are licensed in other states; with whom they communicate effectively by phone, fax, e-mail and letter.  Paralegals are welcome to participate provided that their supervising attorney attends the same webinar training. The requirement to take a veterans case pro bono is waived for government attorneys. As the course provider, Project SALUTE has applied for CLE accreditation in numerous states.

We look forward to your participation in Project SALUTE as the outpouring of veterans in need of competent legal assistance has been truly overwhelming.  Thank you, in advance, for helping Project SALUTE to serve those who have already served our country so well.