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Regarding the issue of SSD and SSI representation and social security lawyer assistance:
Statistically, the great majority of Social Security Disability and ssi disability claims are denied at the Initial Claim and Reconsideration levels. For this reason, most claims that are pursued in Arizona will need to be heard by an Administrative Law Judge before a claimant can hope to receive benefits. It is at the level of an ALJ hearing that one should always be accompanied by a Disability Attorney or Non Attorney Claimant's advocate. While a disability attorney or non attorney representative in the state of Arizona cannot guarantee that a claimant will be awarded social security disability or ssi benefits, such an individual can guarantee that a case will be properly developed prior to a hearing date. The simple truth is this: most claimants will have no idea how to properly and thoroughly prepare a disability case for a hearing, whereas an attorney or non attorney disability advocate in Arizona can apply a certain level of familiarity and expertise with social security rules and regulations toward the goal of obtaining a favorable outcome on a case. And, in many cases, an attorney or non attorney representative will have many years of invaluable ssdi and ssi claim experience to lend to a claimant's disability case. Can a claimant who is not represented by an attorney or non attorney still win an ssd or ssi disability claim at an ALJ hearing? Yes. And, in fact, this does occasionally happen. However, the odds of winning a social security disability or ssi claim before an Administrative Law Judge in Arizona are markedly decreased when a claimant does not employ the services of an attorney or non attorney representative; therefore, a claimant should weigh the risk of going unrepresented to a hearing when their future livelihood is literally at stake---particularly when it takes so long to get to a disability hearing in the first place. And even unrepresented ssdi claimants in Arizona who are successful and win their claims may not obtain the most favorable onset date for the commencement of their benefits. The date of onset and the date of entitlement, of course, will determine how much a claimant will receive in backpay; therefore, being able to prove the earliest onset date is of extreme importance for a social security disability or ssi claimant. Disability attorneys and advocates in Arizona do a great many things to ensure that a social security disability or ssi claim will have the best chance of winning. This includes gathering treatment records, obtaining detailed statements from a claimant's treating physicians, and, at the time of the hearing, applying a professional understanding of SSA regulations and requirements to the disability adjudication process. Though attorney or non attorney representation in Arizona is never required in an ssd or ssi disability claim, to attend a hearing before a judge without the assistance of a disability attorney or non attorney representative is unwise and may result in a lost opportunity to win disability benefits. |
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