For more than six years I worked as a lawyer in the Boston office of the Social Security Administration Office of Hearings and Appeals, now known as the Office of Disability Adjudication and Review (ODAR).
I'm too tired to understand why some cases were allowed and others denied. Many, but not all, cases that were admitted, showed serious medical problems and fit the criteria of the Social Security Act and regulations. In some cases I had to assume thatthe result was influenced by the hearing (at which I was not present). Some cases that have been rejected not enough evidence for a strong, despite the severe health problems or medical problems not allowed in "professional" reasons.
Unfortunately, others who were not allowed, that they are involved, including serious health problems and have been demonstrated in the criteria of the Social Security Act and regulations. Most people agree to participate with a disability would be that the plaintiffs, thehave a responsibility to give medical records to have difficulty assembling a good medical file. In line with the reality, the regulations also require that developing the state agency determination of disability and social security "to" the medical evidence. Some of the cases were denied their medical evidence "developed" by the state disability determination agency or by social security or by private attorneys or non-attorney representative had. ToUsing the banal expression, in a perfect world, would the medical evidence was fully developed, but that's not a perfect world. 20 CFR 404.1512 (d), 1614, 1740, 416.912 (d), 1014, 1540.
An application for Social Security disability or Supplemental Security Income disability is, officially, a non-adversarial process. 20 CFR 404.900.
The applicant is not required, a lawyer or a lawyer is not representative, but must be represented. 20 CFR404.1700, 416.1500.
My advice (selfish as it may seem) is that an applicant should have a representative if he or she meets a list (20 CFR 404, Subpart P, see Appendix 1) and has indisputable medical evidence. For the few, the applicants would have to meet the medical evidence to clear a list, I would suggest that they also have the ability, the Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) and the Social Security Rulings read.
My "Secrets to win", like aSocial Security Disability or Supplemental Security Income disability case, the case at the hearing level are:
(1) You need to have the medical evidence,
(2) You have a good presentation at the hearing to make (if there is a hearing) and
(3) You have a memorandum, which is present every step of the sequential evaluation process (five adults and three children) (20 CFR 404.1520; includes 416.920).
This is a recipe not a guarantee. Once the medicalCollected evidence and wrote the memorandum, should an application for an immediate positive decision "on the record," made. But in case you did not grant a favorable decision on the recording, and after a hearing nor an unfavorable outcome, you have appealed to the medical findings and the agreement the foundation for a potentially successful appeal to the Council or Review Board or United States District Court (memoranda are not currently requiredof ODAR.)
At the hearing level, because of the immense backlog of Social Security disability and Supplemental Security Income disability cases, the reduction of personnel and budget authority for Social Security and the obsession with numbers, preparing a case as suggested above, the probability offer to a successful conclusion. In many cases, I worked as a lawyer in ODAR, represented the plaintiff, but no memoranda. The Social Security agency is committed toshow an increase in the number of orders, and with the right preparation, this plant a positive decision.
Copyright © Patricia A. Petow, 2008.
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