The Social Security Administration received close to 2,015 applications for disability benefits in the year 2019 alone. Out of these applications, there were 723 awards. This translates to about 35.9% awards as a percentage of the total requests.
Every year, more than 65% of disabled individuals have a problem accessing their social security benefits.
Have you been wondering how to get a fast-track decision on social security disability benefits? Most times, getting a seasoned attorney is the only thing that stands between you and your social security benefits. All you need is an attorney for social security disability with a record of success, and your problems will be as good as over.
Claiming for social security disability benefits can be a frustrating journey at times. If you hope to get the best out of your social security benefits claims, this is how to choose a high-caliber lawyer.
Hire a Real Attorney
Most Social Security Administration claims don’t require a qualified attorney when it comes to representation. Your representative can take up the process of representing you without having any prior experience or credentials. As such, most claimants embrace the option of a nonprofessional without realizing the implications.
When you fail to hire a real attorney, you risk having a rejected claim. A social security disability attorney has adequate years of experience and education to push your case. It would be a waste of your hard-earned money to settle for a dabbler in the legal field to take up a social security disability case.
Go for Experience as a Priority
It’s not enough to hire a real lawyer. You also need to consider such an attorney’s years of experience before settling for their services. In the year 2019, only 4.7 cases out of every 1000 filed applications ended with an award.
Most successful cases when handling social security disability cases depend on the attorney’s years of experience. Before you hire a lawyer to push your social security case, ensure that they have enough years working with disabled claimants. This will ensure that they understand the dynamics when handling such claims.
A seasoned attorney for social security disability can help you navigate the complicated terrain of social security claims. The lawyer also understands the rules and regulations related to filing and receiving an award.
Attorneys who have a history of handling social security disability cases handle hundreds of claimants every year. This means that these individuals have the requisite experience to deal with your issue with the guarantee of an award.
Professionalism and Courtesy
Attorneys should have an unmatched level of professionalism and courtesy when dealing with social security disability cases. Even so, not all attorneys are the same. Occasionally, you’ll meet a lawyer who lacks the professional decorum needed to retain clients.
When dealing with an attorney for social security disability, it would help to consider the level of exceptional professionalism and courtesy. Even when dealing with attorneys in a busy legal firm, they should still ensure timely callbacks.
Basic courtesy is essential when dealing with a legal representative. Such professionals should be able to respond to questions and provide feedback on important issues. Dealing with an attorney who shows a high level of courtesy and professionalism can help ease your pressure during filing for disability benefits.
The only problem that arises most times is the fact that professionalism is hard to quantify. That’s why you need to consider another important factor when looking for an attorney for social disability. This specific factor relates to referrals.
References
When looking for a reliable attorney for disability benefits, it’s often the lawyer’s word against that of past clients. Any firm worth their salt should have a list of past, satisfied clients.
Testimonials from past clients goes a long way in building your confidence about the specific attorney and their ability to deliver. Before settling for an attorney for social security disability, ensure that they can present a list of past clients.
Such references can help you confirm the lawyer’s level of professionalism. References also help you identify other issues such as the attorney’s time consciousness and courtesy when dealing with your case. An attorney for social security disability who doesn’t have a list of references should be a red flag to you.
Attorney’s Credentials
As noted earlier, a claimant’s representative doesn’t need to be a registered lawyer. However, it makes all the differences when you deal with a credible attorney. Most seasoned attorneys with a successful conversion rate have all the requisite credentials.
Ensure that your lawyer has all the necessary licensing and certifications. Most of the top-of-the-class attorneys also have additional training in handling social disability cases, which is an essential addition to their level of education.
Consider Case Management
One mistake most claimants make when seeking legal support is the failure to consider case management. Some lawyers tend to outsource services to other less experienced attorneys when the workload is overwhelming.
It would be essential to be clear on the handling of your case. You may ask to know the kind of support staff the specific attorney will attach to your lawsuit.
If you aren’t keen, you might think your case is in the hands of a qualified lawyer. However, in actual sense you might get a low-deal due to poor case management. It would be essential to ask the respective attorney or firm about their caseload.
Before engaging an attorney who has a heavy workload, ensure that you understand how they intend to handle your case. It would be a complicated scenario to wait in the queue for long, especially given your disability. A reliable attorney should be able to inform you upfront of any pending cases and their urgency as a precursor to taking up your claim.
Approval Rates
When assessing an attorney’s capability, it would be essential to consider their approval ratings. Any top of the range legal firm should set a standard in their approval ratings.
You might need to ask about the firm’s approval ratings at the hearings levels. The other important question to ask should be the number of wins attributed to the firm that are for full benefits.
Understanding the number of partial and full benefits will give you a better idea of how effective the respective firm is in handling legal cases. Approval ratings go a long way in the determination of a firm’s ability to deliver. If a potential attorney has a lackluster approval rating, it would be unrealistic to expect a favorable outcome in the case.
Attorney Access
Every attorney has specific communication channels that work for them. If you are looking to hire an attorney, it would be essential to start by asking about their accessibility. How easy will it be to access your legal counsel whenever you need their services, advice, or input?
Some issues can be resolved on the phone. However, others require a one-on-one meeting with the respective attorney. If your attorney for social security disability isn’t easy to access, you might be in trouble whenever there’s an important matter to discuss.
A reliable attorney should be ready to receive and respond to calls, emails, and physical meetings as often as possible. Most of these meetings help to bring you up to speed on the progress of the case. However, it would help to be realistic, given that most reputable lawyers tend to face time constraints.
Special Knowledge of Your Case
Cases of social disability differ depending on the actual injuries. Looking for an attorney for social security disability must go beyond the focus on any lawyer. The number of lawyers in the United States has been on the rise, with close to a 15% growth since 2008. With such numbers, it would be essential to deal with an attorney who understands your specific condition.
Ask in advance how many cases similar to yours, the attorney may have handled in the past. It would be wishful thinking to engage an attorney who has never handled cases specific to your current issue.
The more the attorney has had previous cases related to yours, the greater the chance of managing the issue successfully. Your lawyer should be well-versed with these five steps when filing the social security disability case.
Where Can I Get a Reliable Attorney for Social Security Disability?
When dealing with social security disability, you might experience a recurrence of frustrations. This often affects the claim reward outcome. It would help to work with a reliable attorney at this point.
The internet has good referral sites that can help you identify the best attorneys. You may also access such information from legal aid clinics. However, finding such attorneys online is not an outright guarantee that they are reliable.
Access Your Disability Award Today
Only a handful of social security disability claims get the nod each year. Most of the other cases experience delays and rejections. The outcome depends on your legal team’s level of experience and their knowledge of the specific issue.
Are you looking for an attorney for social security disability? It would be useful to pay attention to these tips before deciding on the best lawyer to represent you.
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