Serving Those Who Served
How UB Law Students Make an Impact through the Veterans Law Practicum
Published November 11, 2026
"All gave some, some gave all."
It's a powerful phrase that honors the sacrifices made by military veterans. At UB School of Law, it also speaks to a broader commitment to service, one that students put into practice by using their developing legal skills to advocate for veterans and their families.
Through the Veterans Law Practicum, students are making a meaningful difference for veterans and surviving spouses across Western New York while gaining hands-on legal experience. Since 2025, their advocacy has generated more than $561,000 in favorable outcomes for clients, demonstrating the profound impact law students can have well before earning their JD degrees.
Read on to discover the powerful work being done — and the lives being transformed — since the practicum’s launch.
Learning the law by helping real people
The Veterans Law Practicum is directed by Professor David Coombs, who joined the UB Law faculty in 2023 after a distinguished 21-year career in the Army’s JAG Corps. Under his supervision, students work directly on veterans’ benefits cases, gaining experience many law students may not encounter until after graduation. They interview clients, investigate claims, develop legal arguments, draft advocacy materials and navigate administrative processes with the Department of Veterans Affairs.
The work is both practical and deeply personal. Students develop skills in legal research, investigation and advocacy while learning something equally important: how to listen carefully, earn a client’s trust and understand the individual story behind a legal claim.
“Students learn interviewing skills, build relationships with clients, and do a bit of detective work,” Coombs says. “They find the evidence, dig up information and connect dots that might not have been connected before. They use that information to argue why a particular benefit is something the veteran or surviving spouse is entitled to receive.”
The result has been a series of meaningful victories, from increased pension and disability benefits for veterans and their spouses to back pay for benefits long denied. For students, each case is also an opportunity to put classroom learning into practice while developing the judgment, confidence and advocacy skills they will carry into their careers.
But Coombs emphasizes that the practicum’s impact goes well beyond the financial results.
“Every successful claim represents more than a dollar amount,” he says. “It reflects our mission to serve those who have served our nation and to ensure that veterans and their families receive the support they have earned through sacrifice and service.”
A bridge to the veteran community
A major reason for the practicum's success is its close partnership with WNY Veterans One-stop Center. The collaboration provides a welcoming and accessible location where students can meet with clients and connect directly with the veteran community.
“The Center has given us dedicated space to work out of,” Coombs says. “That partnership not only gives us a permanent physical location for meeting with clients, but it also makes it easier for veterans and their family members to get our help and obtain the benefits and assistance they need. It is a really important bridge between the veteran community and the legal advocacy we provide.”
Where learning becomes impact
UB Law is expanding opportunities in veterans law with a new course taught by Professor Coombs next spring, along with additional instructional support from two adjunct instructors, creating even more pathways for students interested in this area of practice.
For prospective students, the Veterans Law Practicum offers a compelling example of experiential learning at UB Law: building practical skills, learning from experienced faculty mentors and using a legal education to make a tangible difference in people’s lives.
As we celebrate Veterans Day and honor those who served, the practicum reminds us that a legal education is about more than learning statutes and case law. It’s about learning how to use the law in service to others. At UB Law, students don’t have to wait until graduation to begin.