lawyers.lyricalguy.com is written for people who may be reading it on a hard day: veterans in their seventies and eighties, spouses managing paperwork between appointments, adult children helping from another state, and people living with mesothelioma or another asbestos-related illness. If our pages are difficult to read, magnify, or navigate, the information in them is worthless. Accessibility is not a compliance checkbox for this site — it is part of whether the guide works at all.
Our commitment
We aim to conform to the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.1, Level AA. We treat that as an ongoing target rather than a finished state: as we add guides on decision reviews, appeal deadlines, and accredited representation, we check new pages against the same standard and fix what we find.
Measures we take
- Semantic structure. Each page has a single H1 and a logical H2/H3 outline, so screen-reader users and people who navigate by headings can jump straight to the section they need instead of listening to an entire article.
- Descriptive link text. Links say where they lead — “the VA’s current compensation rate tables,” not “click here.” This also makes our out-links to VA.gov and other official sources easier to scan.
- Alternative text on images. Every image carries alt text that describes what it shows in respectful, plain language. Decorative images are marked so assistive technology can skip them.
- Color contrast. Body text, headings, and links are chosen to meet or exceed AA contrast ratios, and we never use color alone to carry meaning.
- Keyboard navigation. The site can be operated without a mouse: menus, links, and interactive elements are reachable by Tab, and focus is visible.
- Responsive, resizable text. Pages reflow on phones and tablets and remain readable when text is enlarged up to 200% in the browser, without content being cut off or overlapping.
- Plain language. We define jargon on first use — Higher-Level Review, Supplemental Claim, docket, accreditation, clear and unmistakable error — and keep sentences short. Reading level is an accessibility issue too.
- Readable long documents. Long guides are broken into short sections with lists and summaries, so a reader who is tired or in treatment can take the page in pieces.
Known limitations
We want to be honest about the gaps rather than claim perfection:
- Third-party advertising. This site is funded by Google AdSense display ads. The markup, contrast, and behavior of individual ad creatives are produced by advertisers and served by the ad network — we do not write them and cannot fix them. Some ads may not meet the standard we apply to our own content. Our page layout keeps ad slots outside the main reading flow so the article itself remains navigable.
- Embedded and linked material. Documents and pages on VA.gov and other external sites are outside our control. If an official form or PDF is inaccessible, the VA’s own accessibility contact is the right route, and we are happy to point you to it.
- Older articles. As we revise earlier guides, occasional legacy formatting may not yet meet our current standard. Tell us and we will prioritize that page.
Assistive technology and browsers
The site is built on standard, semantic HTML, which is intended to work with common screen readers such as NVDA, JAWS, VoiceOver, and TalkBack, and with browser zoom, high-contrast modes, and reader views. We do not require JavaScript to read an article. We also do not require an account, so no reader has to complete a form or a CAPTCHA to get to the information.
Feedback and how we fix things
If you hit a barrier anywhere on this site — a heading that reads wrong, a link you cannot reach by keyboard, text that will not enlarge, an ad that interferes with a screen reader, or anything else — please email support@lawyers.lyricalguy.com. It helps if you can include:
- the page address (URL) where the problem occurred;
- a short description of what happened and what you expected;
- the browser, device, and any assistive technology you were using.
We aim to acknowledge accessibility reports within a few business days and to describe what we plan to do about them. Straightforward fixes are usually made right away; where something takes longer, we will tell you and, if we can, offer the same information another way — for example by sending the article’s text in a plain email.
Related pages
For how we write and review our guides, see our Editorial Policy. For how the site is funded and why advertising never influences content, see our Advertising Disclosure. For other questions, see Contact Us.