Blogs

Picture a thick stack of papers on the judge's desk, they will have your medical history from the doctors you have seen during your illness, your work history, etc. 

What about your personal history? What about what your illness has done to you emotionally? The toll it’s taken on your family life  

An affidavit from a family member, friend or even former co-workers will give the judge a personal look into your illness and your life. 

Frequently, I get asked to explain the importance of getting an attorney involved during the administrative level of review in a short and/or long term disability claim, rather than once a “final denial” is received. A final denial essentially means the claimant has exhausted all administrative levels of review; therefore there is no longer the option of appealing the denial of his/her claim and the next step in his/her claim would be, in most cases, filing a lawsuit in Federal Court.

When a claimant hires an attorney, Social Security actually governs how they are allowed to charge a fee. Social Security goes one step further and actually withholds the fees directly from the retroactive benefits that are due a client and sends the balance of those funds after they deduct the fees. For this service they charge a service fee to the attorney (never the claimant).

Why do I need to keep track of my medical records?

One of the most important key elements to a Social Security Disability claim can be the medical record. There are instances when doctors' offices will merge, change the name of the practice or a doctor will leave a practice and not be able to take the patients records with them. 

Have you ever wondered how a judge makes a decision on whether or not to approve your benefits? Your hearing is only going to be 45 minutes long and there is no way you are going to be able to paint a picture of your life in 45 minutes well enough for a judge to understand what you are truly going through. Surely you should have more time to explain your disability and make the judge understand why you should get approved, right?