When your Ocala Social Security attorney is planning for your Social Security disability hearing, she may consider calling witnesses to testify on your behalf. You will need to testify at your hearing, of course, but the judge may view your statements as more credible if they are supported by the testimony of other people.
Your attorney will review the facts and evidence in your case long before trial, and will develop a theory of how you qualify for Social Security disability benefits. Witnesses can serve different purposes depending on what this theory is. Generally, they will be used for one of two things: corroborating your testimony or providing before-and-after testimony about how your disability has affected your activities of daily living.
If your Ocala Social Security attorney has called the witness to corroborate what you said during your testimony, her questioning may be brief, along the lines of:
Sometimes, your Ocala Social Security attorney will use a witness to testify to differences in how you function now as opposed to how you functioned before your disability. What the judge is interested in hearing from the witness isn’t just a recitation of your medical diagnosis. He or she will already have that in your medical records. Nor is it helpful for a witness to give a general assertion that you are disabled.
A witness can help the most by providing specific details about how your life has changed as a result of your disability. What things could you do before that you can’t do now? Even if the witness observed you in a non-work setting, the judge can use this information to extrapolate what limitations your disability would create in a normal workday.
If you have been denied Social Security disability benefits, your chances of winning your claim on appeal increase significantly if you are represented by an experienced Ocala Social Security attorney. Please contact the CJ Henry Law Firm at (352) 304-5300 to find out how we can help.
