Do you need a lawyer at your Social Security disability hearing ? Let me tell you why you do (though you are not required to have one): 1 By the time you get to a hearing your case has already been denied TWICE: once at the application level, again at Reconsideration . This is your third and best chance. 2 Social Security will have its own experts at the hearing: a vocational expert and an Administrative Law Judge . They may also bring in a doctor or "medical expert" to testify. You should not be the only non-expert in the room. What a disadvantage. 3. The odds are stacked against you most of the time. On average, fewer than 50 percent of claimants will prevail at a hearing. Government studies show that claimants with lawyers are 3X more likely to be approved than those who are not represented. (Source: Government Accountability Office Study, 2017). 4. A knowledge of Social Security la...
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