Where you late to your high school graduation? Your wedding?

Don’t get lost and don’t be late.

Use Map-quest and have directions. Plan enough travel time to get lost. Plan to get to the hearing in time to sign in, look at your file, and compose yourself.

Social Security Disability hearings are informal and you do not have to dress up. You may have to wait if the Administrative Law Judge is running behind. The hearing will last about 45 minutes to 60 minutes and the time will fly. Be prepared for your big day! For more help and information search here.

Posted April 24th 2008 to Social Security Hearning | Comments (1)| Permalink | Trackback |  Print This Post |  Email This Post

You have filed your Request for Hearing and you have waited, waited, and waited some more. You may waited for over a year but the mail man has just delivered a letter from Social Security with a Notice of Hearing.

The Notice of Hearing will tell you the date, time, and location of your hearing. Don’t be surprised where the hearings can be held. I have had hearings at the local Marriott hotel where the visiting ALJ was staying and in bank buildings!

You will generally get 30 days notice of the hearing and be asked to send a form back to the local office that confirms you will be attending that hearing.

So, now the big day is approaching what should you do?

First and foremost, if you don’t have an experienced Social Security attorney such as Nancy Cavey or Sharon Barrett, get one immediately. You have a better chance of winning with representation than without.

If you choose to do it yourself (this in not a Home Depot type project) you should immediately get all your medical reports from any medical provider who saw you from the date you filed your initial application until the day you got the Notice of Hearing.

Make two copies. One should be sent to the local office by certified mail immediately. Take the second and put in date order. Then sit down at your kitchen table with a pad of paper. Start reading and taking notes. What did I complain about? What did the doctor say about my ability to sit, stand, walk, bend, and stoop? Probably nothing!

That should be enough to send you to a social security disability attorney who can get from your treating physician information about your physical or emotional abilities. Getting your doctor to say your are disabled is a waste of time and money. That is not what the Administrative Law Judge (ALJ) is looking for.

Since you have decided that you are Perry Mason, what are you going to do next?

You are going to get ready to testify. OK, are you now ready to admit you need an attorney? You may have talked your way through life before but it is not going to work before the (ALJ). A Social Security attorney will prepare you for the most important day in your Social Security claim.

Posted April 24th 2008 to The Appeal Proces | Comments (0)| Permalink | Trackback |  Print This Post |  Email This Post

You have been denied a second time.

You have two options. Give up (never) or appeal the denial of your Request for Reconsideration (always)!

So what do you have to do next? You must file a Request for Hearing within 60 days from the date of the Request for Reconsideration. If you don’t, you simply won’t get a hearing in front of an Administrative Law Judge (ALJ).

You want that opportunity to tell the ALJ your story… but it is not the story you think you should tell.

When you were is school I am sure you had a teacher who wanted you to “tell them what they wanted to hear.”

It is the same thing when you are in front of the ALJ. You don’t want to tell them your story… you want to tell the ALJ the Social Security story and explain how you meet the criteria in the 5 steps we have talked about.

But, you won’t get to tell that story unless you timely file an appeal of the denial of your Request for Reconsideration. For more in-depth help contact our skilled attorneys here.

Posted April 24th 2008 to The Appeal Proces | Comments (0)| Permalink | Trackback |  Print This Post |  Email This Post

The answer used to be “NO!” While you could always get your medical records from the VA and give the records to Social Security, VA doctors simply refused to fill out the Medical Source Statements that are crucial to the success of any social security disability claim.

The VA has issued VHA Directive 207-024 (September 11, 2007), “Provision of Medical Statements and Completion of Forms by  VA Health Care Providers” which authorizes and requires VA Medical staff to complete Medical Source Statements.

If the VA refuses, cite this directive. It is available at http://www.1.va.gov/vhapublications/ViewPublication.asp?pub_ID=1593.

For more help contact us here.

Posted April 19th 2008 to The Claims Process,The Claims Process and Your Doctor | Comments (0)| Permalink | Trackback |  Print This Post |  Email This Post

You can lose! Even worse, you can destroy your ability to successfully appeal the Administrative Law Judge’s denial.

Many Administrative Law Judges simply do not give the same attention to an unrepresented claimant they give to a claimant who has gotten a lawyer.

Why? Because the unrepresented claimant is clueless! The claimant hasn’t the foggiest idea why the claim was denied, what they have to prove to win, what is in their file and, more importantly what is NOT in the file that should be!

It is like going to the teacher and telling them you can’t hand in your homework because your dog ate it! That makes it very easy to deny your claim.

You must understand why you case was denied. You must understand what evidence you need to give to the judge. You must make sure your medical records are current. You must make sure your doctors identify your functional limitations. You must be prepared to deal with any medical experts or vocational experts the Judge may have at the hearing to testify. You must be ready to testify about the things the Administrative Law Judge needs to hear from you to be able to award you Social Security Disability Benefits.

No, simply telling the Administrative Law Judge that you are in pain, no one will hire you, you can’t keep a job or you can’t work is NOT going to get you Social Security Disability Benefits.

What it will get you  is a big fat DENIAL! And MORE TROUBLE!

Ever decision by an Administrative Law Judge is subject to review by a higher body called the Appeals Council. The Appeals Council can agree with the Administrative Law Judge’s denial. reverse the decision or send it back the Administrative Law Judge for another hearing.

The reality is that once you are denied by the Administrative Law Judge it is going to be very, very hard to find a lawyer who will take your case and try to undo all your mistakes. The consequences of representing yourself are greater than you think! Be sure to get a lawyer such as Nancy cavey or Sharon Barrett.

Posted April 19th 2008 to Getting a Lawyer | Comments (0)| Permalink | Trackback |  Print This Post |  Email This Post