Since 2009, CVLC has co-located and collaborated with the VA CT’s Errera Community Care Center to create the country’s first VA medical-legal partnership. This partnership is the essential component to CVLC’s success in helping to serve Connecticut’s most vulnerable veterans. The warmth of the Errera Center, the richness and depth of the attorney relationships with the client groups and clinicians on site, and the seamless integration of attorneys as part of the mental health care available to veterans at Errera allow CVLC to be truly accessible to veterans.

The medical-legal partnership model allows CVLC staff and volunteers to serve marginalized clients, many of whom are homeless and many of whom have serious mental illnesses including schizophrenia, bipolar and major depression. This co-location means easy access to free legal assistance, without any transportation or scheduling barriers. This also creates unique opportunities for multi-disciplinary teamwork between VA social workers, psychologists, psychiatrists, peer specialists and CVLC staff and volunteer lawyers, paralegals and law students.

Because of the success of this model, in 2014, CVLC added the VA CT's Newington campus as a second VA medical-legal partnership location for on-site services. In 2017, CVLC added CT's Department of Veterans Affairs in Rocky Hill as its third site.

Connecticut Veterans Legal Center

Alison Weir

Shannon Carter

Juliet Taylor

Felix Chaoulideer

Shannon Mykins

Darren Pruslow

The Legal and Support Staff at Connecticut Veterans Legal Center provide essential legal assistance to marginalized veterans, focusing on issues such as VA benefits, discharge upgrades, and civil legal matters. This dedicated team, comprising attorneys, intake specialists, and paralegals, collaborates closely with mental health professionals to ensure comprehensive support, breaking down barriers to access and fostering a holistic approach to care for those in need.

Legal and Support Staff

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