Statistically, the vast majority of Social Security Disability (aka SSDI and SSD) and ssi claims are denied at the Initial Claim and Reconsideration levels, and this typically happens regardless of whether or not a claimant is represented by an attorney or non attorney disability advocate. For this reason, most SSD and SSI claims will need to be heard by an Administrative Law Judge before a claimant can hope to receive disability benefits (this is the one level of the process where having advocate is absolutely recommended). It is at the level of an ALJ hearing that one should always be accompanied by a Disability Attorney or Non Social Security Attorney Claimant's Representative aka Disability Advocate. While a disability attorney or non attorney advocate representative cannot guarantee that a claimant will be awarded social security disability or ssi benefits, a social security lawyer can guarantee that a case will be properly developed prior to a hearing date. The simple fact of the matter is this: the vast majority of SSD and SSI claimants will have no idea how to properly and thoroughly prepare a disability case for a hearing, whereas an attorney advocate or non attorney disability representative 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 several 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 advocate or non attorney representative 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 are markedly decreased when a claimant does not employ the services of an attorney or non attorney representative; therefore, a social security 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 claimants 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 possbile onset is of extreme importance for a social security disability or ssi claimant. Disability attorneys and advocate representatives 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 medical records, obtaining detailed statements from a claimant's treating physicians, and, at the time of the hearing, applying a thorough understanding of SSA regulations and requirements to the disability adjudication process. Though attorney or non attorney representation is never required in a disability claim (federal court being the exception), 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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