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My 4-year “blogiversary” came and went earlier this month, and I have been thinking about the profound difference this professional blog has made to my life over the past four years.

Back when I started in 2008, I learned the blogging ropes from Kevin O’Keefe, the lawyer-CEO of Lexblog. Kevin recognized early the potential of blogging for lawyers. I did pretty much everything he suggested on his website, and spent hours learning about RSS feeds, customizing the blog, using Twitter to amplify my presence on the web, and writing posts that provide information and help to solve problems for potential clients.

Here is what Kevin is saying these days about blogging by lawyers:

Kudos to the American lawyers and lawyers from around the world who have harnessed the power of blogging.

  • To advance the law by offering their insight and commentary in an open source collaborative fashion.
  • To help others, whether in-house counsel, executives, consumers, or small business people, by freely sharing legal information and insight.
  • To improve their own station in life and that of their families by becoming a better lawyer through analytical reading and writing which blogging requires. Better lawyers do get better work from better clients.

It’s disappointing that some lawyers have latched onto blogging as a marketing and SEO gimmick. Some going so far as to even have marketing companies write blog content on the lawyer’s behalf.

This blog is written by me, and provides a real look into my practice and Social Security disability law. Readers can infer my commitment to my clients, and my strong belief in the importance of obtaining Social Security disability benefits for them. 

I continue to hear from Social Security disability claimants and lawyers from around the country that have been helped by the information published in the blog. My Google analytics tells me that readers in all 50 states visit the site each month.

I am proud of the result of my efforts. So somewhat belatedly, Happy Blogiversary. And as always, thank you for reading.


Photo: Our daughter Bridget at her 2nd birthday party, after a cupcake

Every other week, I link to articles of note regarding Social Security disability. For the long Memorial Day weekend, here are several notable articles and blog posts for you to read:

Memorial Day is the traditional start of Summer season here in Maine, and we have family and friends visiting us in Kennebunk. Best wishes for your Memorial Day weekend. 

I have developed a subspecialty within Social Security disability law for people age 55 and older. This area of Social Security disability law is notable because the principal issue for many disability claims involving physical impairments is whether or not the claimant can perform his or her past relevant work.

Those applying for Social Security disability benefits who are age 55 and over often benefit the most from lawyer's help at the beginning of the claim process. Professional assistance can lead to a favorable decision without the waiting time and risk involved in a Social Security disability hearing with an administrative law judge.

I recently received fully favorable decisions for two clients over age 55 that illustrate this point. 

  1. Claimant #1 had the initial disability application approved, and did not have to wait for a hearing, or risk being assigned to the wrong judge to decide the claim.
  2. Claimant #2 had the initial claim denied, and had to appeal and wait over a year for a hearing by an administrative law judge. 

The difference between the two claimants was that the first consulted me to assist with the initial application for disability benefits, and the second claimant did not consult an attorney until after receiving an initial denial. Both disability claims were approved, but one claimant had to wait over a year for a hearing. That wait could have been avoided. A year is a long time when you cannot work, and have no income coming in. 

In this particular case, claimant #2 did not fully describe her past work during the initial application process. She was understandably unaware of the importance of vocational information to the determination of a Social Security claim. I see that mistake over and over again in my practice. It takes experience with disability law to recognize what is important to your claim at the very beginning of the claim process. 

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Get help from a lawyer with your disability claim 

If you are considering an application for Social Security disability benefits, or have already applied and want assistance with your claim, please contact Gordon Gates for a free consultation.

There is remarkable article by Sean Collins-Smith and Brandon Shulleeta, published yesterday in the Virginia Lawyers Weekly, entitled Richmond ALJ hearing Social Security claims has one of the highest denial rates in the country.

The subject of the article is Drew A. Swank, a Social Security administrative law judge who decided more than 1,100 disability claims last year (the article appears to rely on the SSA's published stats for FY 2011). The judge denied 79% of claims outright, and issued "fully favorable" decisions just 6% of the time. That is not a typo. 6% of decisions were fully favorable to the claimant. 

I urge you to read the article.

If you do the math on 1,100 decisions during a work year, it is not pretty. A Social Security disability applicant, particularly one whose claim is denied, deserves more time from the judge deciding the case.

Furthermore, in my opinion, if you are denying 79% of disability claims, you are running roughshod over Social Security's own regulations about how to consider evidence in a disability claim.

Again, I urge you to read the article.

There is a helpful article in the April Social Security Forum, which is a newsletter for NOSSCR members. On page 11, Illinois attorney Eric Schnaufer suggests having three reasons to rule out past relevant work at step four, and three reasons to rule out other work at step five of the sequential evaluation.

For each past relevant job at step four, a representative should have three reasons why the preponderance of the evidence shows that the claimant could not perform that job both as actually performed and as generally performed. …

A representative should have three overriding theories of disability at step five.

Since a representative does not know what findings an ALJ will make, having three reasons for the critical step 4 and 5 determinations will protect against any one particular reason being rejected by the ALJ.

This a theory of the case on steroids, but it is a useful technique for developing a claim and preparing for a hearing. Make sure you have more than one reason why the judge should make the appropriate findings at step 4 and step 5.

I used this approach for my last hearing, and we developed four independent reasons why past work was precluded. Each reason was supported by a medical source statement from a treating physician. The same four reasons would preclude other work at step five.

It is a good approach. Have as many reasons as possible, supported by the medical evidence, why work is precluded.

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Get help from a lawyer with your disability claim

If you are considering an application for Social Security disability benefits, or have already applied and want assistance with your claim, please contact Gordon Gates.

 

Every other Friday, I highlight articles of note from the Social Security disability law blogs. I missed last week's scheduled roundup due to the NOSSCR conference, so this week we have several selections:

Continue Reading Social Security Disability Blog Roundup

I wrote recently about statements in support of a disability claim. Statements from those who are familiar with your situation (and particularly with your functional limitations) can be helpful evidence in support of your claim for Social Security disability benefits. Typically, these written statements are from a spouse, a relative, or a close friend.

At the NOSSCR conference in Philadelphia last week, attorney Daniel Emery spoke on the issue of the claimant's credibility, and its central role in ALJ decisionmaking.

Judges often focus on a claimant's credibility when evaluating a Social Security disability claim. Many people who are disabled have subjective symptoms, such as pain or fatigue. The judge must determine if the pain or fatigue is as bad as you say it is, and if it limits your ability to work as severely as you say it does. This necessarily requires a credibility determination.

One aspect of Mr. Emery's excellent presentation was to highlight the effectiveness of a statement from a previous employer on the issue of credibility. An employer's statement is an often-overlooked opportunity for favorable evidence. If your former employer says you were a hard worker, but became unable to do the job, that statement is highly supportive of your disability claim.

A disability applicant's desire to work is central to the credibility assessment for many ALJs. A statement from a previous employer can be persuasive evidence of your work ethic.

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Ten steps to prepare for your Social Security disability hearing

 

The latest statistics for processing times for disability claims at the Social Security hearing offices around the country have been released by the SSA, and reprinted in the April 2012 NOSSCR Social Security Forum newsletter.

Waiting times continue to shorten in Portland, Maine. The average wait for a hearing decision is now 377 days – just about 12 months. This is an improvement over the waiting time of 392 days that I reported three months ago.  I have definitely noticed an uptick in the pace at the Portland ODAR, and recently claims have been set for hearing at a furious rate.

The improvement in Portland is partly due to the help of nearby hearing offices. To help manage its backlog and reduce the wait time, the Portland, Maine hearing office transfers some of its work to nearby hearing offices. Such transfers are a simple matter now that the disability claim files are all electronic.  

Some of the "folder assembly" work is being done elsewhere. Also, claims that will be scheduled for video hearings in Bangor or Augusta are being transferred to nearby hearing offices. The Augusta claims are going to the Manchester, New Hampshire hearing office, and the Bangor area claims are being transferred to the new ODAR in Lawrence, Massachusetts. If you live nearer to Bangor or Augusta than Portland, there is a distinct possibility that your video hearing will be with a judge outside of Maine. 

Processing time runs from the date of the hearing request (which is the appeal of a Reconsideration denial) to the day a decision is issued. The 377 days is an average. Some disability claims are resolved more quickly, but a Social Security disability claim that requires a hearing and a lengthy written decision may take longer.

One speaker that caught my attention at the recent NOSSCR conference in Philadelphia was Peter Barry, a Minnesota consumer rights attorney. He spoke about abusive debt collectors, and what to do about them under the FDCPA. It was a very good presentation, and I have been thinking about the topic since attending the session.

Our disability clients, who are by definition unable to work, can be under severe financial stress. Unpaid bills come with the territory. Our clients also have health conditions, often including chronic pain or mental health issues, that can make them vulnerable to debt collectors, some of whom are unscrupulous.

I am going to explore this issue with my clients. I want to see if they are being treated with truth, fairness, dignity, and respect. Because our clients have enought stress in their lives without being treated poorly by debt collectors.

Here are debt collection FAQs from the FTC.

I was honored to present a workshop at last week's NOSSCR conference in Philadelphia. We had a good turnout. My topic was writing effective hearing briefs for the ALJ. Thank you to all who attended!

I have published my written presentation materials. Just click here: Writing Effective Hearing Briefs for the ALJ.

One of the questions after my presentation was: Should you call it a brief or a memorandum? Here is my answer:

I have used those terms interchangeably in the past. Social Security labels it a Representative Brief in the disability claim file. Calling it a memorandum reflects that it should be concise and fairly short. However, now that it is addressed to no one in particular (since we do not know the identity of the judge in advance of the hearing), I am going to start calling it a statement of the case, which is what the Portland, Maine ODAR calls it.