Posts under ‘Building a Case’

Let’s say you are reviewing your Social Security exhibit file before your disability hearing and you discover that some of your doctor’s (or other records) are not there. I have mentioned before that it is not unusual for the medical records in a Social Security file to be a year or more out of date.
What [...]

How do you begin to review your Social Security exhibit file? Here is a quick guide to finding the really important parts.
Start with the “F” section to review the medical records.

If you do not review anything else in the file, you need to know what medical records are there (and what records are missing).
Here is [...]

Just before your Social Security hearing, you will be given a cd and pointed at a computer. If you ask, someone may help you load up the disk and get you to a screen that looks like this:
Ok, now what?
What is all this stuff and what do I do with it?
Social Security uses electronic case [...]

There is a new Social Security blog written by a 34 year veteran of the Social Security Administration.
One of his recent articles talks about the pros and cons of Social Security debit cards
… paying benefits digitally rather than by paper is a big savings to SSA. It cost about $1.00 to mail a paper check [...]

I was asked to address some of the issues parents should consider when deciding whether to start an application for Social Security disability benefits (typically children’s Supplemental Security Income – SSI – benefits) for their disabled child.
Many parents worry that if their child receives Social Security disability benefits, they will be labeled as “disabled,” and [...]

Working while applying for Social Security disability benefits is a topic I have previously discussed. However, reading that article, you might come to the conclusion that it is never a good idea to work if you are either on, or applying for Social Security benefits (including Supplemental Security Income – SSI benefits).
However, there are circumstances [...]

Today’s guest article is contributed by Meredith Walker, who writes about the masters in public health. She welcomes your feedback at “MeredithWalker1983 at gmail.com” Enjoy the article and please make her feel welcome!
Complex partial seizures are epileptic seizures that affect one particular region of the brain. These seizures do not usually cause a tonic seizure more [...]

I was recently asked if you need a functional capacity evaluation (FCE) in a Social Security disability case.
No, but it really helps if you can get one.
As I previously wrote, it is vital to get a statement from your doctor about your abilities and limitations in the workplace. This is sometimes called a medical source [...]

If you hire a lawyer on a Social Security case after today, you may be surprised to learn that the maximum fees are $6,000.
I thought the most a lawyer can charge in a Social Security case was $5,300?  That’s what the attorney who helped my cousin said.
Don’t worry, no one is trying to pull a [...]

We have written about service dogs for children with autism and mentioned two groups which provide training: 4PawsforAbility and Guiding Eyes.  The response has been amazing! A lot of people want to learn more about these programs.
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Many people have asked who is eligible for [...]

Attorney Anthony Reeves writes about what to do and not to do when applying for Social Security disability benefits for a seizure disorder (whether due to epilepsy or pseudo-seizures).
Most people think that epilepsy is so traumatic that an individual should be approved fairly easily.  Due to its unpredictability, the symptoms can affect you in a variety [...]

This is one of the most difficult issues in a Social Security disability case.  You might look “normal,” but you know that there is no way that you can work. 
If you tell someone that you are applying for Social Security, they may raise their eyebrows in surprise, or even tell you, “you don’t look disabled.”
When [...]

What is the most a lawyer can charge in a Social Security case?
We have talked about the typical fee agreement when you are applying for Social Security disability benefits before. But I am often asked what is maximum someone can charge?
Social Security regulations set a cap for attorneys fees.  Originally, the fee cap was $4,000, [...]

A “fee petition” is a way your lawyer asks Social Security for fees for his services.
I though attorneys were paid a percentage of what I get?
Percentage-based contingency fee agreements are the most common way attorneys get paid in Slocial Security cases. However there are two ways an attorney might get paid.
Fee agreements based on a [...]

It surprises my clients to learn that, most of the time, Social Security does not update medical records after the initial denial.
With wait times of a year or more, this can mean that by the time your case gets in front of a judge, the records in your file may be a year (or more) [...]