More than a dozen veterans, including some who served in the Second World War, packed a federal courtroom in Halifax Wednesday to fight against thousands of dollars in clawbacks of their disability benefits.
Their attorneys argued that their long-term disability benefits are compensation for injuries sustained during the time they served in the military, and should not be counted as income.
In a class-action lawsuit, the veterans argue that their long-term disability benefits are being reduced by the amount of their disability pension, because the federal government is counting the benefits as income.
The lawsuit, which includes thousands of veterans, was launched by veteran Dennis Manuge in 2007. The suit was certified by the Federal Court in 2008.
In 2001, Manuge was injured in a fall at CFB Petawawa, before he was deployed to Bosnia.
Manuge estimates he lost about $10,000 due to clawbacks between 2003 and 2005.
"The government of Canada is deducting an orange from an apple, and the apple is a pain and suffering payment, and it's for the non-economic losses of acquiring a service disability," he told CTV Atlantic.
The hearing, which is to continue Thursday, is examining whether the federal government has the right to claw back the benefit, and if the benefits are being miscalculated.
According to the military's insurance plan, injured veterans may receive a percentage of their former income. However, the plan considers monthly pension payments as income and deducts that amount from what is paid out under the benefit.
Government lawyers cited other cases that defined disability benefits as income.
Some veterans say they are losing thousands of dollars per month to the clawbacks, while the most severely injured veterans are not receiving any benefits at all.
"We say you are certainly not gaining by being paid something to accommodate your disability," said Ward Branch, who represents one of the claimants.
"To equate that with the concept of income ... is not a reasonable interpretation."
With files from CTV Atlantic's Ron Shaw and The Canadian Press
