Whether you've applied for disability, been denied for benefits, or are simply at the point of considering wheather or not to file for Social Security Disability or SSI, the issue of representation is an important one. And, typically, applicants and potential applicants have questions such as the following:
How much will it cost to hire a disability attorney, When should you get one?, What will an attorney do for you?, and Will an attorney increase your chances of winning Social Security Disability or SSI Disability Benfits?
Regarding the issue of representation and representatives:
Sadly, most disability claims in New Hampshire will eventually 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, certainly, that one should always
be accompanied by a Disability Attorney or Non Attorney Claimant's
Representative.
While a disability attorney or non attorney representative cannot
guarantee that a person 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 fact of the matter is this: the vast majority of
claimants will have no idea how to properly and thoroughly prepare a
disability case for a hearing, whereas an attorney 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.
Can a claimant in New Hampshire who is not represented by an attorney or
non attorney still win a disability claim at an ALJ hearing? Yes. And, in fact, this does occasionally happen from time time.
However, the odds of winning 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 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 ssd or ssi 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 an ssdi 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 Representatives do much to make sure that a social security
disability or ssi claim will have the best chance of winning. This
includes gathering medical records and obtaining detailed statements
from a claimant's treating physicians.
Though attorney or non attorney representation is never required in a
disability claim, to attend a hearing in New Hampshire 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
benefits.
