WINNING MORE DISABILITY CASES
I recently attended a function where a few dozen attorneys and claimant's representatives discussed Social Security disability representation.
The topic of discussion was writing pre-hearing memos or briefs for administrative law judges (ALJs). There was unanimous agreement (rare for lawyers) that well written briefs helped to win disability hearings. Many of them agreed that a well drafted brief could get a favorable decision more quickly.
That theory is also supported by my experience. I never go to a hearing without first submitting a concise memorandum or brief that summarizes the pertinent evidence in the case. A well drafted brief serves several functions.
First, it helps the judge find key evidence that he or she needs to correctly apply the law. An administrative law judge will average deciding 2 or 3 cases per day. He or she doesn't have time to read several hundred pages of evidence on a case. The representative's brief is like a road sign with arrows that tell the judge where to look.
Second, the brief forces the representative to have a good look at the case before the hearing - to categorize, organize and review the evidence. It also causes the representative to develop a "theory" of the case - that is, a strategy for persuading the judge that the claimant is disabled according to the law.
Finally, the pre-hearing brief is an excellent written record of the evidence presented in the hearing. A hearing rarely runs longer than 60 minutes. If the representative doesn't have enough time to orally present every fact that is considered pertinent to the case - the evidence is still there in the brief--for the judge to review later.
The quickest turn around I've ever experienced on a disability case was 39 days. I had informed the claimant that an appeal was not a quick affair. It usually takes about 15 months to get a hearing - plus another 90 days or so to get a decision. So, 18 months is about average, start to finish. The claimant expressed urgency. He had reasons for needing a decision sooner. I wrote a brief that "boiled down" our theory of the case in about 5 pages. Two weeks after I had submitted the brief, the hearing office called me to offer a fully favorable decision without a hearing. Case settled - 39 days, start to finish. (That is not, by the way, a typical time frame and my average case takes much longer - full disclaimer here).
The point remains, however, that a well drafted memo can win more Social Security disability cases and sometimes get favorable decisions even sooner.
Click here for information about a free evaluation of your Social Security disability case.
The topic of discussion was writing pre-hearing memos or briefs for administrative law judges (ALJs). There was unanimous agreement (rare for lawyers) that well written briefs helped to win disability hearings. Many of them agreed that a well drafted brief could get a favorable decision more quickly.
That theory is also supported by my experience. I never go to a hearing without first submitting a concise memorandum or brief that summarizes the pertinent evidence in the case. A well drafted brief serves several functions.
First, it helps the judge find key evidence that he or she needs to correctly apply the law. An administrative law judge will average deciding 2 or 3 cases per day. He or she doesn't have time to read several hundred pages of evidence on a case. The representative's brief is like a road sign with arrows that tell the judge where to look.
Second, the brief forces the representative to have a good look at the case before the hearing - to categorize, organize and review the evidence. It also causes the representative to develop a "theory" of the case - that is, a strategy for persuading the judge that the claimant is disabled according to the law.
Finally, the pre-hearing brief is an excellent written record of the evidence presented in the hearing. A hearing rarely runs longer than 60 minutes. If the representative doesn't have enough time to orally present every fact that is considered pertinent to the case - the evidence is still there in the brief--for the judge to review later.
The quickest turn around I've ever experienced on a disability case was 39 days. I had informed the claimant that an appeal was not a quick affair. It usually takes about 15 months to get a hearing - plus another 90 days or so to get a decision. So, 18 months is about average, start to finish. The claimant expressed urgency. He had reasons for needing a decision sooner. I wrote a brief that "boiled down" our theory of the case in about 5 pages. Two weeks after I had submitted the brief, the hearing office called me to offer a fully favorable decision without a hearing. Case settled - 39 days, start to finish. (That is not, by the way, a typical time frame and my average case takes much longer - full disclaimer here).
The point remains, however, that a well drafted memo can win more Social Security disability cases and sometimes get favorable decisions even sooner.
Click here for information about a free evaluation of your Social Security disability case.
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