As anyone who has ever filed for benefits relating to social security disability, the process can be very confusing given how complex it all is. In most instances, the applicants are unsure how to fill out all of the required paperwork correctly and how to submit any supportive medical documentation. It is no surprise then that in excess of 65 percent of all claims for disability allowance are rejected.
Although there is no legal requirement for a lawyer to be involved in the process of applying for social security disability benefits, having one do it for you, can greatly increase the success of the claim that you submit. This is backed up by the latest statistics from the Social Security Administration (SSA), which shows that applications are more likely to be approved when they are submitted by a lawyer.
The benefits of hiring a lawyer
A dedicated social security disability attorney is fully aware of and knows the application process inside out. As a result of this, they are able to present your case in a way that makes it quite clearly obvious what your disability/disabilities are and leaves no uncertainty. They are also able to provide some assistance in obtaining the relevant documentation from medical establishments that is used during the application process.
They can also use their knowledge and expertise to explain to you how the Blue Book listing works and guide you in ensuring that you meet all of the criteria for this. Thanks to all of the help that a social security disability lawyer provides, the chance of your application being rejected is greatly diminished. They will even go as far as regularly checking with the Social Security Administration (SSA) for you to see how your application is proceeding.
The costs of hiring a lawyer
It is clear from the above that hiring a specialist social security disability lawyer comes with a number of benefits. However, this comes at a cost, as we are all aware that the guidance of a lawyer does not come cheap. This begs the question then that if you are in a financial situation where you need to apply for benefits, how are you going to be able to pay the expensive fees that come with hiring a lawyer?
For cases like this, there is not a requirement to pay for a lawyer upfront. If your claim is successful, then the Social Security Administration (SSA) automatically sends your lawyer 25 percent of the total financial compensation that you receive directly – with a maximum ceiling of $6,000. This means that if your application is not successful, you are not required to buy your lawyer any money.
Questions to ask
Before you go ahead and hire a social security disability lawyer, there are a number of things that you should ask them in order to ensure that they are able to deliver a favorable outcome for you and that you are not wasting your time. These include questions of their credentials and success rates.