Disability Claims

When you will be asked to testify about your educational and work history at your Social Security disability hearing, the judge will want to know about the job duties in your past employment, the job skills that you have, and the educational credentials that you have attained, if any. In terms of past work, you will be asked about the duties for which you were responsible at each position that you have held in the past 15 years. You will be questioned as to how much weight you were required to lift on the job and how much time per workday you had to sit, stand, and walk. Any difficulties that you have had at your former jobs due to…Read More

An experienced Ocala disability lawyer will prepare your case well and ensure that you and your witnesses testify in a way that helps your case. There is one thing over which your lawyer has no control, however, and that is the time that it takes to conduct a hearing and as how long it takes to receive a decision. Hearings are, as a rule, quite short, generally clocking in at about 60 minutes or less. Even on the longer side, they almost never exceed an hour and a half. The shortness of the hearing is starkly contrasted by how long it can and does take for a claimant to receive the written decision. Both you and Ocala disability attorney will…Read More

Most of the work that your Ocala disability attorney will do for you will consist of building your case in preparation for the hearing. On the legal side of things, this means preparing you and any other witnesses for testimony at the hearing as well as doing research into the law and the outcomes of similar cases. In terms of the medical part of your case, your Ocala disability attorney may look at scientific literature pertaining to your health issues, gather records, and obtain statements from your doctors. An experienced Ocala disability lawyer will prepare you well enough so that you can do most of the talking at the Social Security disability hearing. At a hearing, it is best if…Read More

Unlike the formal rooms that are characteristic of courthouses, Social Security hearing rooms are just small conference rooms. They sometimes have an American flag or the seal of the Social Security Administration in the way of official trappings. As with any other type of meeting room, they always have a large conference table. There will also be a desk that will sit slightly above the level of the main conference table; this is the judge’s desk. An optional addition is a small desk for the judge’s assistant, who will otherwise sit at the main conference table. Because every hearing is recorded, every Social Security hearing room is equipped with audio recording devices. In order to ensure that the recording made…Read More

In this article, Ocala disability lawyer CJ Henry will explain the first two levels of review of your claim for Social Security disability benefits. You can apply for Social Security disability benefits (but not for SSI disability) on the Internet, but most claimants apply by phone. You can also make an appointment with a Social Security Administration claims representative at your local Social Security office. You will be asked to provide basic information, which the claims representative will type into the computer and print out for you to sign. If you make a telephone appointment, then the claims representative will mail you the form for you to sign. Keep in mind that only you can sign this application; your Ocala…Read More

In deciding whether you qualify for Social Security disability benefits, the Social Security Administration will place great weight on objective medical findings and your treating doctor’s opinion. In this article, Ocala disability attorney CJ Henry will explain why those two elements are so important in the determination of your disability. 1. Objective Medical Findings In your Social Security disability claim, objective findings can play a major role in the evaluation of whether or not you’re disabled. However, if your impairment does not meet or equal an impairment included in Social Security’s Listing of Impairments, the Social Security Administration should not look solely to see if your objective medical findings correspond to its special medical criteria. Even the Social Security Administration…Read More

The Social Security Administration carefully scrutinizes every aspect of your application for Social Security disability benefits. This includes the medical reports, clinical and laboratory test results, and the opinions of your treating doctor. In this article, Ocala disability lawyer CJ Henry explains that, contrary to what you may think, it’s not necessary for you to undergo a functional capacity evaluation, nor must your treating doctor have special expertise to give an opinion as to your capacity for performing work-related activities. You are never required to undergo a functional capacity evaluation. In fact, these tests hardly provide concrete indication of your ability to sustain work activities for 8 hours a day, 5 days a week, and 50 weeks a year. Especially…Read More

The Social Security Administration’s determination of disability is based not just on objective medical evidence, but also on subjective symptoms that are often very hard to measure. This is because symptoms of pain aren’t readily quantifiable by clinical tests or laboratory diagnostic techniques. In this article, Ocala disability lawyer CJ Henry explains why the Social Security Administration may need to ask your treating doctor for a subjective opinion on your medical condition. The Social Security Administration may ask your treating doctor for an opinion as to the nature and severity of your symptoms. Social Security will also inquire as to what kinds of activities you’re still able to do in spite of your medical impairments and what your physical or…Read More

Applying for Social Security disability benefits can be a long and confusing process. In order to present the very best case for disability benefits before the Social Security Administration, you will need to know what to do and what to avoid. In this article, Ocala disability lawyer CJ Henry will provide some tips on how to proceed with your disability claim. Two huge mistakes you should avoid. First, if you’re initially denied benefits, do not give up. Failing to appeal is one of the biggest mistakes you can make, although it’s not uncommon: over half of disability claimants whose applications are denied fail to appeal for reconsideration, and many who are denied at the reconsideration phase fail to request a…Read More

Return to Step Four. If you do not meet or equal a listing in the Social Security Administration’s Listing of Impairments, but you satisfy Step 4 of the sequential evaluation process (that is, you’re not able to perform past relevant work), you will be found disabled if you are not able to perform other work. In this article, Ocala disability lawyer CJ Henry will explain that Step 5, the final step in the sequential evaluation process, examines your potential ability to perform prevalent work that you haven’t actually done before. Step 5: Are You Still Able to Perform Other Work? In this final step, the Social Security Administration will evaluate whether you are, despite your impairment, still able to adjust…Read More