Disability Lawyer for denied claim

1 - Contact your local or state bar association or NOSSCR to find a Social Security attorney in your area, look for one offering a free no-obligation initial consultation (most do) then meet with one or more and sign up with one you are comfortable with. NOSSCR Lawyer Referral Service - For help in finding attorney representation, contact its lawyer referral service during Eastern business hours: 800-431-2804 http://www.nosscr.org/referral.html 2 - Much more then they are allowed to. Social Security law limits the fee to the smaller of 25% or $6000 of any past due benefits. Recent nationwide statistics from the Social Security Administration show that: a) Initial Applications are denied approximately 65% of the time and these take 3-4 months on average to process, but can take six months or more. b) Requests for Reconsideration (the first appeal) are denied about 78% of the time and these also take 3-4 months on average to process, but can take six months or more. c) Hearings before a Social Security ALJ (the second appeal) are approved about 65% of the time - the wait to get to a hearing varies greatly depending on which hearing office you are dealing with (they time varies from 10 to 24 months), in our area the current wait is approximately 16 months (it has been as high as 25 months in the past five years). According to the General Accounting office of the US Government, the percentage of ultimately favorable decisions for claimants with representation was about 61% compared to 39% without representation. With representation you are more likely to win your Social Security Disability benefits.

Mr. Wayson's answer is excellent, as always. In selecting an attorney to handle your case, my recommendation is to look for an attorney who handles lots of Social Security disability cases, but who is not spending a ton on advertising (by, for instance, buying billboard space or TV commercials). Attorneys who spend large amounts on advertising generally have less time to spend on individual cases due to higher overhead. Also, do not wait on this. You only have 60 days from the date of your denial to file an appeal.

For an attorney, you may contact your local city, county or state bar association to see if they have a lawyer referral program, or you may contact the National Organization of Social Security Claimants' Representatives (NOSSCR) for the name and email address or telephone number of attorneys in your area. Most attorneys who do any amount of Social Security work are members of NOSSCR and provide a free initial consultation. In any event, no attorney may charge a fee for work on a social security claim until it has been approved by Social Security. The fee limit is a maximum of 25% of past due or back due benefits you are owed, and many lawyers charge less than the full 25%, and the money is not paid until your claim has been approved. The telephone number for the lawyer referral service of NOSSCR is 1-800-431-2804. NOSSCR's website is www.nosscr.org. In addition, you can find a Board certified specialist in Social Security by contacting the National Board of Trial Advocacy. They evaluate lawyers (independently) in many types of claims and require extensive experience and testing before a lawyer is certified. They have a section specifically for Social Security: The National Board of Social Security Disability Advocacy, Divisions of the National Board of Legal Specialty Certification. Their link is: http://www.nblsc.us/ I hope this information helps. Good luck to you! ------------------------------------------ Please remember to designate a best answer to your question.