Social Security hearing tip: don’t be browbeaten by the judge
You are finally at your hearing. The judge, wearing black robes, turns to you and asks:
“You last worked in 2003, right?”
It’s the “Dirty Harry” moment! You try to remember.
Was it 2003? Maybe it was 2004? Or 2005? Well, if the judge thinks it was 2003, it must have been 2003.
“Yes, judge. I last worked in 2003.”
Bzzt! Wrong answer!
Do not guess the answer to the judge’s question; and do not accept the what the judge tells you about your history if you do not remember the answer yourself.
How long does It take to get a Social Security hearing?
In my experience with Colorado Social Security cases, hearings are usually scheduled approximately 12-14 months after the appeal is filed. That is the most common time frame that I see for having a hearing scheduled.
However, I occasionally see cases scheduled as early as six months after the appeal (this is pretty rare), and sometimes as late as 18 months.
This is a long time! For most people there is a real question of how they are going to make ends meet while waiting for their case to go in front of an Administrative Law Judge (ALJ).
However, it is important to try to make the best use of this time:
Social Security hearing tip: know your judge
I enjoyed attorney Gordon Gates‘ article about knowing who your judge is in your Social Security case:
The first thing I want to know when I receive a hearing notice for a Social Security disability claim is the name of the administrative law judge (ALJ) who will hear the case and decide the claim. It probably shouldn’t matter which judge hears your case, since they all interpret the same rules and would be looking at the same facts. But it really does matter. Each judge approaches a claim a little bit differently, and it is very helpful to know how a particular judge tends to look at a case. Also, each judge conducts the hearing in a particular way, so I prepare for the hearing in a way tailored to the ALJ who will hear the case.
I could not agree more! When someone contacts me with a hearing already set, I ask who the judge is on their case.
Here are some examples of how judges differ:
Social Security hearing tip: Watch out for these questions!
The Social Security Disability Blog got me thinking about some of the questions I have heard Judges ask at hearings.
It is fairly common to be asked the following questions during a Social Security hearing:
How long can you sit?
How long can you stand?
How far can you walk?
How much can you carry?
Be careful, your answers might get you into hot water.
People want to answer by telling the Judge the most they can do:
Well, I can walk for about half a mile.
The problem is that the Judge is trying to determine your “residual functional capacity” (RFC): what you can still …
