The administrative law judge who will preside over your Social Security disability claim has a very specific set of guidelines to follow. Understanding the legalese of those guidelines can be difficult for anyone without a law degree. With the help of your disability lawyer, you should review how the judge will make their final decision.
One of the subjects you will be expected to talk about at your Social Security disability hearing is your physical limitations and what you are able to do in light of your disability. The judge will probably ask you questions such as “How long can you stand?” or “How long can you sit?” Your Chicago Social Security disability lawyer will advise you that these questions are somewhat open-ended and open to interpretation.
It would be a mistake to assume the worst case for each question and give a simple answer to your Chicago Social Security disability lawyer. For example, the judge is not asking “How long are you able to stand before your pain is so extreme that you have to go to bed?” You should not answer this question with a flat “one hour,” as if that is the absolute worst case you can endure. Remember, the judge is inquiring into your ability to do work and hold normal work responsibilities. Your Chicago Social Security disability attorney will want you to consider how long you are able to stand in a typical work situation where you might be able to sit down and stand up again over the course of a normal workday.
When answering these questions, your Chicago Social Security disability attorney will advise you to consider giving detailed anecdotes and examples. For example, talk about how when you had to wash dishes the other night; it took you over an hour, but you had to go lie down for half an hour afterward because you were in so much pain. The latter part is crucial: without it, the judge will think you can stand for an hour without any problems.
A similar problem of interpretation occurs with questions related to sitting. The judge might ask how long you can sit, to which you might say “20 minutes.” But this will make the judge curious if you have been sitting down at your hearing for close to an hour already. Be sure to clarify that you will have to stand or lie down for a while if you sit for that long.
If you want more information about preparing for your disability hearing, get help from a Chicago Social Security disability lawyer. Call Chicago Disability Law .
Two thirds of all disability claims are denied initially. While this may seem worrisome, it is important not to be discouraged. Go over your application with your Chicago Social Security attorney before submitting it to ensure that it is as accurate and error-free as possible. If your claim is denied, remember that there is a much greater chance for success on appeal.
If you suffered an impairment and are unsure of the rules for determining if you have a qualifying disability, you will want to consult with a Chicago Social Security disability lawyer. The rules for determining physical impairments like the ability to stand, sit and walk are complex and the rules for mental impairments add an extra layer of complexity.
Rules for Determining Disability Explained by a Chicago Social Security Disability Lawyer
In evaluating your case to claim disability benefits, your Chicago Social Security disability attorney will need to look at the rules to determine what you need to prove for your condition. Some common examples include:
As these examples demonstrate, your Chicago Social Security disability lawyer will have to gather evidence to prove both what you can and cannot do. Typically, it’s not enough to simply show up before an adjudicator and argue that you can’t do anything.
Contact a Chicago Social Security Disability Lawyer
Proving a disability can be very complex. This is especially true if you have held many different jobs and acquired many different skills. As a result, you will want to work closely with a Chicago Social Security disability attorney.
To learn how an attorney can help your case, contact a Chicago Social Security disability attorney at Chicago Disability Lawyer today.
Knowing what to expect during your Social Security disability hearing is extremely helpful. A Chicago Social Security disability lawyer can help you prepare. One factor that will come into play concerns your physical residual functional capacity, or RFC.
You will most likely be asked several questions regarding your physical RFC at your hearing. These questions are used to assess your ability to perform activities eight hours per day and five days per week, as you would during a full-time job, so you should answer them with that in mind. In addition to answering these questions, try to volunteer additional examples of how you are limited because of your disability. With a Chicago Social Security disability lawyer by your side, the process will unfold more smoothly.
RFC Questions – Examples Regarding Your Ability to Sit
Retain a Chicago Social Security Disability Attorney
Attending your Social Security disability hearing without a Chicago Social Security disability lawyer is unwise. With the help of a Chicago Social Security disability attorney from Chicago Disability Law, you will be able to prepare for your hearing as effectively as possible. Contact us now to get started.
Sincere, honest testimony from lay, or non-expert, witnesses may play a significant role in the decision of your disability claim, supported by your Chicago Social Security disability law firm. Almost all Social Security claims need good and capable lay witnesses.
Corroborative Lay Testimony
Sometimes lay testimony is used to simply corroborate or verify your testimony. The following example shows how a Chicago Social Security disability lawyer may do that:
Q: How often are you able to personally observe the claimant?
A: Each day.
Q: Have you been present throughout the testimony of the claimant?
A: Yes.
Q: Would your answers be essentially the same, or exactly the same, as those the claimant gave if I asked you the same identical questions the claimant was asked?
A: Yes, they would.
Q: As you observed the claimant as he testified today, did he testify truthfully?
A: Yes.
Before and After Lay Testimony
Your lawyer may request testimony of a “before and after” nature from a lay witness. Testimony of this type contrasts before-disability condition to after-disability function.
An ineffective example would consist of having your husband testify you have low back pain, are totally disabled and that you need the disability money. Rather than emphasizing his observation, this testimony simply gives conclusions.
A more effective approach is having your husband testify that you have been together for 29 years, that you always work hard at whatever you do, that both of your incomes are needed to meet expenses, that you are distraught since you are no longer contributing to the family income and that he has had to start a second job.
Additionally, it will help if he gives his observations of your impairments, testifies how they limit your actions, particularly your work functions, and verifies the medical regimen you are following. He can also testify in detail how you tried to pick up your three-year-old granddaughter and dropped her, how you are unable to sleep in bed but must spend the night in a chair and that you can no longer carry groceries in from the car or do household chores such as vacuuming.
Contacting a Chicago Social Security Disability Law Firm
If you have questions concerning lay witnesses or any aspect of your Social Security disability claim, contact Chicago Disability Lawyer to request a free consultation with an experienced and knowledgeable Chicago Social Security disability lawyer.
If you have questions about whether you actually qualify for Social Security disability benefits, you should review the five-step sequential evaluation process used by the Social Security Administration. Learning this process with your Chicago Social Security law firm will help you understand what type and severity of disability you must have in order for you to be found disabled and to receive benefits.
When you have a disability, you might struggle to find a job. Once you have finally been hired, you might have trouble keeping the job for a number of reasons. The federal government established Social Security disability for people who face these challenges so they can receive income. However, the process of applying for benefits can be confusing and overwhelming, and people are sometimes rejected who should rightfully receive benefits.
Getting Your Benefits Approved
No matter where you are in the process of applying for Social Security benefits, Chicago Disability Law might be able to help you with the paperwork. Even if you have not begun to fill out an application, our Chicago Social Security disability attorney might be able to help you organize all of the information you need for your case. With over five decades of experience, our firm has helped others in your situation with their claims.
An Attorney Can Help You
Our attorneys will give you clear answers to questions you may have and help you organize the paperwork for your case. Our background in handling SSI and SSDI claims means that we know how to navigate through what many people find is a complicated process. You do not want to risk making a mistake that will hold up your claim, or even worse, result in a denial. Our Social Security disability lawyer in Chicago understands how to fill out the forms in order to help the process go more smoothly for you.
Social Security Disability Lawyer in Chicago
If you have been denied benefits, you might feel frustrated and overwhelmed. If you don’t have the proper paperwork to back up your disability claim, they could easily deny your application, even if you are not able to work. If your case goes to court, our Social Security disability lawyer in Chicago can help with witness preparation, finding professionals who can testify and accompanying you to court so that you don’t have to face a judge alone.
Our clients can be sure they have confident attorneys to aggressively represent them. Contact our Chicago Social Security disability attorney so we can begin working on your case today.
In this article, a Chicago Social Security disability attorney demonstrates the difference between testimony that is helpful and testimony that is not.
One Example
In the paragraph below, your Chicago Social Security disability lawyer contrasts two versions of a wife’s testimony concerning her husband’s pain.
Poor: Because of his pain, my husband can’t function.
Better: My husband suffers so terribly from his pain that he can’t sleep. He can never get comfortable, takes more pain medications than his doctor has prescribed and then adds aspirin to that with little or no relief. This has been going on since the hospital released him, and it never lets up. We don’t go out any more, he can’t drive or ride in a car as a passenger because of how badly it hurts him. I’ve had to take over the yard work and the shopping because he can’t push the mower or lift the shopping bags. Before his injury, this was never a problem, but now it is. We never visit anybody anymore. He hardly eats, his weight is down by twenty pounds and ever since he was hurt we stopped going to church. He can’t kneel or sit in the pew without the pain forcing him to move. It’s been awful.
Another Case in Point
In the example below, your Chicago Social Security disability lawyer illustrates how a coworker’s and a neighbor’s testimony might be improved.
Poor: [Name’s] disability wouldn’t let him do his job, even when we were working together.
Better: [Name] and I worked in the same department for nearly ten years. Until he got hurt, he was a very hard worker, and even after the injury he did his best in spite of what it cost him. He passed out on two occasions and we had to call an ambulance for him another time. He was moved to a position that didn’t involve as much heavy lifting, but it was hard for him. Everybody tried to help him out, but he couldn’t avoid missing work. I really felt for him, because it really upset him that he couldn’t do his job as well as he wanted to and as well as he’d done it in the past.
Poor: [Name] hasn’t been able to keep her house clean.
Better: [Name] has kept her house spotless for as long as I’ve known her, and that’s been more than twenty years. Since she was hurt a little more than two years ago, though, she’s been letting it slip. I try to come over every week to help out with the wash and I run the vacuum for her. She was a marvelous cook, too, but now she can’t hold a skillet or a saucepan without dropping it. She’s broken several of her dishes. Worst of all, she lost consciousness while she was cooking and fell right onto the stovetop. We had to take her to the emergency room to treat the burns.
Leave Nothing to Chance
Be sure that your testimony and that of your witnesses is all that it should be. Contact us today. Don’t wait another minute.
There are a number of dos and don’ts regarding claimants’ behavior at their disability benefits hearings. Prior to attending a benefits hearing in front of an administrative law judge, it is best for applicants to discuss the following best practices and potentially harmful actions with their Chicago Social Security disability lawyer.
Social Security disability benefits applicants sometimes stray off topic when testifying at their hearings, which can alienate judges or cause the important case elements to get lost among unimportant testimony.
One best practice to take into account when testifying at a hearing is to avoid the following irrelevant topics.
A basic rule of thumb for Social Security disability hearings is to be honest and act normally. An experienced Chicago Social Security disability lawyer knows that the fastest way to make a negative impression upon a judge is to overemphasize incapacities.
Basically, administrative law judges will form an opinion about claimants as they uncover the information relevant to the case. If they believe an applicant is being dishonest, overdramatizing their situation or attempting to accrue sympathy for their case, the hearing judge might rule unfavorably against the applicant.
Some applicants may believe that a judge might be more apt to award them benefits if they appear sympathetic or morally deserving, but a Chicago Social Security disability attorney can explain that this is untrue. Judges assess Social Security disability benefits applicants based solely upon need.
An accomplished Chicago Social Security disability lawyer from Chicago Disability Law might be able to guide you through behavioral dos and don’ts prior to your disability benefits hearing. Call us to discuss your case now.
