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Is it Possible that I Can Win my Case
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If you follow-up with Social Security, you (usually) will be provided with an appeal form called a Request for Reconsideration and a 6 page Reconsideration Disability report. As you might imagine, many claimants fail to appeal, and those that do often find the lengthy paperwork difficult to complete. For this reason, I find that many of my clients retain me to prepare and submit their reconsideration paperwork and to continue representation thereafter. One added bonus - I have found that appeal paperwork filed electronically tends to result in faster decisions and faster processing when the case is moved to the hearing office. My paralegals - Judy and Cameron - are comfortable and experienced with Social Security’s electronic filing procedures and we file our appeals and evidence updates electronically. Getting a Decision at ReconsiderationIf you complete your Reconsideration paperwork, it is sent back to the D.A.S. where another adjudicator reviews your file. It has been my experienced - and this is backed up by Social Security statistics - that very few cases are reversed at Reconsideration. Your best chance at winning at recon would be if you see that compelling medical evidence was not received or considered by your adjudicator and you are able to get this evidence to the adjudicator with a cover letter that explains exactly how this evidence shows that your case meets a listing. The Reconsideration process takes about three to four months and usually results in a denial. Social Security has been looking closely at the value of even having a reconsideration review and it is likely that this stage of the process will be eliminated at some point in the near future. If your case is denied at Reconsideration, the Adjudicator's decision denying your case will be mailed to you with a brief explanation and a notice that you can appeal by requesting a hearing within 60 days. Again, no hearing request paperwork is enclosed, although it will be sent to you if you ask. Getting a Decision at an Administrative Law Judge HearingIf you request a hearing, you will receive an acknowledgment and a letter advising you that you can expect to wait about a year. During this year, your file will be transferred from the D.A.S. to the Social Security hearing office called the Office of Hearings and Appeals (the O.H.A.). After about a year, you may receive a notice from the Judge to whom your case is assigned advising you that your file is being worked up. Thereafter, you will receive a hearing notice setting the time and place for your hearing. When to Get a Lawyer InvolvedI get involved in cases at all levels of this process, although most of my clients hire me after receiving their initial denial. Many clients feel more comfortable having my firm complete and submit the appeal paperwork within the 60 day deadline. In addition, as noted above, I make sure that your medical record, including recent treatment, is sent to the Adjudicator or the Judge at the correct address prior to the hearing. Most importantly, I identify a strategy to win your case and obtain forms, letters or other documents from physicians and others to prove your case. One thing that Social Security will not tell you - once the case leaves the State Agency adjudicator you (the claimant and your lawyer) are responsible for updating the medical record in your file. In fact, updating exhibit files is a big part of what we do for our disability clients. If you do not update your exhibit file you risk the very uncomfortable situation of appearing before a judge with a file that was last updated 2 years previously - not a good omen for success in a hearing. Obviously, not all cases need to be heard by a Judge. It has been my experience, however, that many seriously ill claimants will not be approved at the initial or reconsideration adjudication level. As such, I advise all of my clients to prepare themselves for the likelihood that they will have to appear before a judge at a disability hearing.
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Copyright 2007-2010 Ginsberg Law Offices, P.C., 1854 Independence Square, Atlanta, GA 30338. 770-393-4985 All rights reserved.
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