Social Security. Employees Legal Right

An individual can file an application for disability by phone or in person at their local Social Security office.
When an individual makes a phone application, Social Security will set up a time that they will call the individual back and take the application by phone. Before they call the individual, they will send them a green “Disability Report” form to be completed. When the Social Security representative calls them on the phone for their application, they will take some basic information from the individual, such as date of birth, number of dependents, etc.
After taking the phone application, the Social Security representative will print out the application from their computer system and they will mail it to the individual for review and signature. If the individual has an attorney at this initial level, let the attorney review the Disability Report and the application before mailing it back in. The SSA will ask the applicant to collect all the medical evidence of their disability to submit with their application.
This means that the SSA would like the medical records from all of the medical providers the individual has seen since their disability began and shortly before to the present. As mentioned earlier, an individual can always go into their local Social Security office and file an initial application in person. However, it is recommended that the individual complete the Disability Report on their own or with the aid of an attorney, and not let the Social Security claims representative complete this for them.

WHY DO I NEED AN ATTORNEY?

The Social Security disability application process is very complicated and requires patience and knowledge of the intricacies of the Social Security disability program. In most cases, a layman (a non-attorney), does not have the expertise to navigate through such a detailed and complicated system. An attorney who practices in the Social Security area of law on a regular basis has the knowledge necessary to assist an individual’s case and can argue it in front of an Administrative Law Judge (“ALJ”) when that becomes necessary. Most of the time it is necessary for the case to be heard by an ALJ. A large number of cases are denied, both at the initial application stage and the reconsideration stage, before moving on to the hearing level. It is at this level that the case is heard by an ALJ.
A layman would likely not be trained or prepared to argue the law outlined in the Social Security regulations in coordination with the medical evidence. If it were as simple as offering the Social Security Administration all your medical records, then most individuals would not need attorneys. In most cases, it is not that simple. Social Security statistics consistently show that claimants who have an attorney win their cases more than twice as often as claimants who do not have an attorney.

ATTORNEY FEES

The attorney charges on a contingency fee basis: unless the attorney is successful, there is no fee.
In a disability insurance benefits claim the SSA withholds 25% of the past-due benefits when the claim is won, and they forward the fee check to the attorney. In an SSI claim, the attorney’s fee is not withheld by the Social Security Administration. The attorney must collect the fee directly from the client. This could be a factor if an individual finds it difficult to find an attorney to help with their SSI claim. The attorney’s fee is not as secure as in a disability insurance benefits claim.
What is meant by “back benefits”?

For a disability insurance benefits claim, the back benefit period would be from a year retroactively from the application date or from the alleged onset date of disability, whichever is the latest, to the date the claim is awarded. In an SSI claim, the back benefit period is from the date of application to the date the claim is awarded. An attorney usually charges you 25% of the past-due benefits, regardless of when they take over an individual’s case. In fact, it is probably best to get an attorney as early as possible in the application process.