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Regarding the issue of representation and representatives:
Statistically, the vast majority of Social Security Disability and ssi disability claims are turned down at the Initial Claim and Reconsideration levels. For this reason, most claims will need to be heard by an Administrative Law Judge before a claimant can hope to receive disability benefits. Of course, it is at the level of an ALJ hearing that one should always be accompanied by a Disability Attorney or Non Attorney Claimant's Representative. While a disability attorney or non attorney representative in Vermont cannot guarantee that an ssd or ssi 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 fact of the matter is this: the vast majority of claimants will have no idea how to properly and thoroughly prepare an ssdi 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 in Vermont 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 are markedly decreased when a claimant does not employ the services of an attorney or non attorney representative. And even unrepresented ssdi claimants who are successful and win their claims may find that they did not get as much in past due benefits, or backpay, as they thought they were entitled to. Of course, a representative will always try to prove the earliest date of onset for a claimant's condition for the purpose of getting the most backpay for a claimant. Though attorney or non attorney representation 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. |
| Questions about Social Security Disability How long does it take to get disability benefits approved ? |