The complex social security disability rules cause a lot of confusion. You need to wait at least 12 months after being disabled to get compensation. This is important since the government does not want to make payments to individuals with temporary disability.
If your claim for social security disability is denied at both the initial application and reconsideration stages, you should hire a social security attorney to request a disability hearing.
A social security disability hearing is unlike regular courtroom cases. The hearing is presided over by an administrative law judge (ALJ).
Unlike a traditional court hearing, social security cases are not open to the public.
The claimant and the attorney will be the only persons who will be allowed to sit in the disability hearing. Anyone accompanying the claimant will have to sit in the waiting room.
What Happens at a Hearing of Social Security Disability Case?
During a social security disability hearing, the ALJ will question the claimant about medical issues, past employment, and other relevant issues that have impacted the health and financial life.
The ALJ will ask questions to assess how the life of the claimant has been affected by the disability. You should be ready to answer questions after consultation with your attorney.
Your special disability attorney will speak on your behalf. The attorney will try to present facts that will influence the case positively. The attorney may also ask you questions to reveal additional information regarding the disability.
The attorney can also request expert witnesses to share their insight about the claimant’s disability and the ability to sustain in a particular job. The witnesses will also be asked to share their views on jobs that are best suited for the disabled person in view of the medical problem.
The ALJ will also ask the claimant about additional comments regarding the disability. Once all the information is assessed and accounts of witnesses are heard, the judge will then give a final verdict. In some cases, the judge can resort to a bench meet.
Tips When Filing Social Security Disability Benefits Case
Claimants are awarded retrospective benefits for the previous months. But this is only true if you file the claim within 17 months of the discovery of a disability.
In case you are not able to file a case within the specific time period, you can request for a Protective Filing Date. For this, you have to get the help of a dedicated social security attorney. The attorney will help you set up an appointment with the social security administration.
A follow-up confirmation letter is then issued by the SSA that will serve as a proof of the filing date. You need to get your social security disability lawyer soon to get the process started soon.
Avoid Mistakes When Filing a Social Security Disability Claim
Certain actions could increase the likelihood of denial of your social security claim. Firstly, you should not collect any unemployment benefits when waiting for a claim case. Also, you should quit work when applying for the federal claim.
Once you have filed a claim, you should regularly check the status of your claim. Missing any deadline for a hearing case could result in an outright rejection of a claim. But you should not come to the hearing unprepared. Make sure that you consult with an attorney to fully prepare for a hearing.
Always take medications that are recommended by your doctor. Also, you should consider seeing a psychologist for any emotional problems caused due to the disability. This is because you can allege mental condition in your social security application.
Most social societies tend to be denied during the initial application, and around half get rejected during the appeal process. And the most common reason for the denial of the application is not keeping a record of all medical related documents.
The medical report contains information about diagnosis, medications, prognosis, and also functional limitations that prevent you to earn a livelihood.
Lastly, you should be ready to switch doctors in case a medical expert seems unsupportive of your social disability case. You should switch the doctor if requests for medical records are unanswered or the doctor asks for a fee for the same.
How Hiring a Social Security Attorney Will Reflect Positive on Your Case?
Most social security disability claimants whose claims have been denied have no idea how to properly prepare for a court hearing. So, it’s not surprising that the vast majority of claims for reconsideration are denied.
The reason for a high failure rate is not talking to an expert social security attorney such as at Lemoine Law Firm when filing a claim.
An attorney will use expert judgment and experience in helping you build a strong case. The attorney will assess your conditions during the first interview. The basic facts will help the attorney assess whether you have a strong chance of success. The attorney will take on your case if there is a high chance of success.
When you sign a contract with the lawyer, you will also have to sing a medical privacy release document. This document allows the legal attorney access to a relevant health record. The medical records will be submitted to the SSA before your scheduled hiring.
Your attorney may also request that you go for additional testing if necessary. In addition, the legal expert may ask the SSA for a consultative examination (CE) that is carried out by one of their doctors.
Moreover, the attorney will assess which doctors to ask about functional limitations, what documents to submit to the SSA, and what evidence to withhold that could hurt your case.
Getting the help of a social security attorney will greatly increase the odds of a successful outcome. You should not risk going unrepresented to a hearing. Your entire future livelihood will be at stake, so you need to get expert legal help to ensure that you get the best possible representation for the social security disability case.
Tammie~
This is good information. Many older adults especially find they can no longer perform their occupation, but don’t know too much about Social Security disability and how to go about it.
Important to know, I guess this applies to those living in the states more
I like that you mentioned how getting help from a social security disability attorney would greatly increase the odds of a successful outcome. My uncle is a bit old and has a disability and it seems he wishes to get his social security disability claim. I’d surely suggest that he hire a lawyer to represent him so he’d have an easier time.