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?
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Regarding the issue of representation and representatives:
The great majority of Social Security Disability and ssi disability
claims in Oklahoma are denied at the Initial Claim and Reconsideration
levels.
For this reason, most claims in the state of Oklahoma 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, though, that one should always be
accompanied by a Disability Attorney or a Non Attorney Claimant's
Representative.
While a disability attorney or non attorney representative cannot
guarantee that a claimant in Oklahoma 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 is that 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. 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 or non attorney in
Oklahoma still win an ssd or ssi disability claim at an ALJ hearing?
Yes. And, in fact, this does occasionally happen.
However, the chances 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 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 an
ssdi disability hearing in the first place.
And even unrepresented claimants in Oklahoma 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 lawyers in Oklahoma 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 ssdi disability adjudication
process.
Though attorney or non attorney representation is never required in a
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 ssd or ssi disability
benefits.
Social Security Disability SSI disability benefit Info
