Resources

The second step of the sequential evaluation process deals with the severity factor. As an Ocala disability lawyer can tell you, you must have a severe medically determinable impairment in order to advance to the next steps of the evaluation. Medically Determinable Impairment The SSA requires that your impairment be medically determinable. Your Ocala disability lawyer will explain in more detail what this term means, but generally, it indicates an impairment that has been shown to exist by medical tests and diagnoses. If there are several diagnoses that conflict with each other, your Ocala disability attorney will tell you not to worry. The existence of any legitimate diagnosis is enough for the SSA to find a medically determinable impairment. Without…Read More

What Is “Substantial” Work? Your Ocala disability attorney can explain that this refers to tasks that require either bodily or psychological exertion. If you cannot complete uncomplicated or everyday duties without guidance or help beyond that which is normally offered, or if your duties require negligible effort on your part, it is probably not “substantial.” What Is “Gainful” Work? Gainful work is work for which you are paid or that you do for profit, whether you actually profit by it or not. It is usually decided based on how much money you have been paid. What If I Own the Business? In that case, the SSA will examine your position and its importance to the company whether you are realizing a…Read More

Testimony from people who know you and see you on a daily basis can add weight to the testimony you give at a Social Security disability claim proceeding. An Ocala Social Security disability attorney may gain corroborative testimony by posing certain questions to witnesses who are not in the medical field. An attorney may ask how often the person observes the claimant, whether the person heard the claimant's testimony and whether the testimony seemed truthful. It would confirm the claimant's testimony if the witness saw the claimant all the time and found the person's testimony truthful. Medical Conditions: Before and After An Ocala Social Security disability attorney may attempt to get lay witnesses to speak to a claimant's condition before…Read More

What Will You Be Asked by Your Ocala Social Security Disability Lawyer? At your Social Security disability hearing, you will be questioned on a variety of topics. While not all of these questions will relate directly to your case, your Ocala Social Security disability lawyer must use this opportunity to demonstrate any challenges that you face that may qualify you for receiving disability benefits. Your Ocala Social Security disability lawyer may ask you regarding the following: Personal information: What your name is, where you live, and what your Social Security number is When you were born, how old you are now, and how old you were when you became disabled Your level of education What level of education did you…Read More

Those looking to apply for Social Security disability benefits must provide a medical history of incapacitation. An Ocala Social Security disability attorney may be able to help an applicant assert his or her medical history both on the benefits application and at a hearing presided over by an administrative law judge. Medical History Requirements An applicant must be disabled for at least 12 months in order to qualify for Social Security disability benefits. Therefore, an Ocala Social Security disability lawyer will gather an applicant's medical history and other medical information to construct a disability timeline. An Ocala Social Security Disability Attorney May Gather Specific Information A Social Security disability attorney can best do his or her job by investigating a…Read More

The Hearing Room Typically, a Social Security disability hearing takes place in a small, informal conference room. When you and your Ocala Social Security disability lawyer enter the room, you will probably see a few government emblems, such as an American flag or the official seal of the Social Security Administration. The room itself will be furnished with a table for you and your Ocala Social Security disability lawyer to use. The administrative law judge’s desk will sit on an unobtrusive riser so that the judge will preside in a slightly elevated position. A small desk or table may also be available for the judge’s assistant. Recording the Hearing Recording equipment will be placed somewhere in the room so that…Read More

After a Social Security disability applicant's request for benefits is denied, he or she will want to work with Ocala disability lawyers to request a hearing before an administrative law judge. This is one of the first steps involved in appealing a negative ruling. What Happens After Ocala Disability Attorneys Request a Hearing on an Applicant's Behalf? This request prompts the following steps, which may eventually lead to a hearing with an administrative law judge: Usually, an attorney advisor will evaluate a candidate's application. The attorney advisor may contact the applicant's Ocala disability lawyers to ask for more information. If necessary, the attorney advisor may also perform a pre-hearing conference with the candidate's Ocala disability lawyers. The advisor will use…Read More

What is the criteria for determining the extent of a person's disability in a Social Security disability case? Although a doctor's professional opinion is solicited, that opinion will undoubtedly vary based on who you ask. Guidance on these matters can be provided by Ocala disability attorneys. Ocala Disability Attorneys Discuss Subjectivity When Assessing a Patient's Capacity to Perform Work Activities Over a Sustained Period The Social Security Administration's Code of Federal Regulations addresses the issue of subjectivity, recognizing that claimants are restricted by symptoms which are subjective and hard to quantify [20 C.F.R. § 404.1529(c)(3)]. It is further acknowledged that clinical or laboratory diagnostic techniques cannot objectively assess a claimant's symptoms [SSR 96-7p]. What a Doctor May Be Asked to…Read More

The five step sequential evaluation process determines whether a person can be classified as disabled. Step three requires that a claimant's medical conditions, symptoms and test results meet at least one of the impairments listed in the Social Security Administration's Listing of Impairments. An Ocala disability attorney can guide you through this often complicated process, and inform you regarding the Listing, which is a set of medical criteria found in the administration's disability regulations. Your Medical Signs Compared to the Listing of Impairments It is possible that your impairment may not be found in the SSA's listing. However, an Ocala disability lawyer can argue that your conditions are medically equivalent to one in the listing. There are four situations in…Read More