Nexus Letter Evaluations

What a nexus letter is

A nexus letter is a written opinion from a qualified clinician about whether a current condition is connected to something that happened during service. It is prepared independently, after an evaluation, and it sets out the clinician’s reasoning and the basis for it.

It is a clinical document, not a legal one. What it contains is an honest professional opinion — which means the answer is sometimes no, and a letter that always said yes would be worth nothing to anybody.

Who writes it here

Ernest Murphy, MSW, LICSW — a Licensed Independent Clinical Social Worker and a Marine Corps infantry Veteran. The combination matters for this work: the evaluation rests on clinical training, and the conversation tends to go faster with someone who does not need military service explained to him.

How it works

• An evaluation first. There is no such thing as a letter without one. This is a full mental health evaluation, and it takes as long as it takes.
• Records are yours to provide. Anything considered is obtained through you or another authorized route.
• The fee is for the work, not the outcome. You are paying for the evaluation and the written opinion. The fee does not change with what the opinion says, and it is not contingent on any result.

What we will tell you honestly

If the evaluation does not support a connection, the letter will say so, and we will tell you before you spend anything further. We would rather lose the work than write something we cannot stand behind.

Asking about it

The quickest route is to send us a message describing the situation in a line or two. We will tell you whether this is something we can help with before anyone books anything. You can also read what happens in a first session and our fees.

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