KNOW WHERE THE MINES ARE BURIED

 

The most dangerous part of any battle zone is crossing it before the explosive mines have been found and disarmed. You can't see the mine until you've stepped on it, then too late!

Social Security disability hearings are like legal minefields. The claimant doesn't know where the mines are buried and often steps on them before realizing they are there. They are always buried just beneath the surface, waiting to destroy your claim.

The only solution is a guide who has a map of the minefield. He knows what the mines and where they are. In most cases, he can find them before you step on them and blow up your case.

This may sound a little dramatic but I promise it is literally true. For example, consider a recent hearing I had before an administrative law judge. The claimant was 55 years old with past work all at the medium exertion range. A very strong case. Except for the buried mine. He had one brief job that was performed at the sedentary level. If the vocational witness testified that he could still perform that easier, sedentary job, the claim would be denied and all benefits lost.

What I discovered was the this one problematic job was only performed for about 3 months. And the claimant was being trained to perform the work--thus he was a trainee for the entire period. And the training didn't go very well. So, when I was able to get that job title re-classified as a "trainee" and for only for about 90 days, the hidden mine failed to explode. The vocational witness testified that my client did not work long enough to learn the skills required for the job and the judge therefore ruled it was not past relevant work. Problem gone! Case won. Money in the bank. But it could easily gone the other way!

It's one simple example of how an attorney/advocate who knows the rules can side-step the mines and cross the minefield safely to bring home the money!* A simple oversight in this case would've cost this claimant tens of thousands of dollars and a lifetime of benefits.

Get a lawyer and let him/her guide you across the minefield. There is no risk, the cost is very small and it beats losing your case and all your money. Once you step on a mine, it's almost impossible to recover and undo the damage.

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*I do not mean to represent that having an attorney or advocate always results in winning a case and certainly there are no guarantees as to the outcome of any case. But I think you are better off, by far, with someone who knows the process and how to navigate it.