JUDGES MUST VIEW DISABILITY AS YOUR LAST RESORT
JUDGES MUST SEE SOCIAL SECURITY AS YOUR LAST RESORT
Since 2010, Social Security has been trying to slow down the number of people getting on disability benefits. We have seen approval rates in hearings drop from 62% in 2010 to 42% in 2016. That's a significant reduction. An administrative law judge will approve your Social Security benefits only if he or she believes that your working career has been terminated by a disabling condition and disability is the last resort. If you are age 50 or above this means that the judge does not believe you can perform any of the work you have done in the past 15 years. If you are under age 50 (a younger individual), this means that the judge believes there is no work of any kind in the US economy that you could perform--based on a medical impairment. PROS (It Helps the Case If...)
There is a steady work history in 1 or 2 jobs for years.
You have tried easier work and weren't able to do it.
Your doctor has told you to stop working.
There are good and recent medical records, including X-rays, MRI, CT scans, laboratory tests, etc.
There is no history of drug or alcohol abuse
You are more than 50 years old.
CONS (It May the Case Hurt if...)
There has been sporadic or little work history
You can't show that you've tried to stay in the workforce
Your doctor won't get involved, won't say anything to help
There's a recent history of alcohol or substance abuse
You are not working for some reason besides a physical and/or mental disability (going to school, can't find a job, taking care of your children, got laid off, starting a business, etc.).
We must give the judge a good medical record and complete work history records. In addition, we need to show how your medical condition affects the ability to function in the work environment. Doctors' records usually confine themselves to medical conditions, not how your ability to work or function is limited. I always try to get some written testimony from the doctors about how my client's ability to perform work activities is restricted by each medical condition. For example, how is sitting, standing, walking,bending, reaching, lifting, memory, following instructions or staying focused affected by impairments? These statements are called "opinion evidence." We also go looking for evidence from other sources, such as a statement from a co-worker or former employer. Sometimes, school records can also be useful.
In short, we look at everything to get the big picture of why the claimant can't work. Hopefully, then, we can prove that the claimant's only recourse is Social Security disability payments. In the end, here's the picture the judge needs to see: This is a hard working person who has done everything possible to stay at work but is now at the end of the vocational line; disability is the last resort. If we can honestly make that case, and back it up with medical records, your benefits can be approved