What Is a Disability Hearing in South Carolina?

How Do I Request a Disability Hearing in South Carolina?

When you receive notice that your reconsideration request was denied, request a disability hearing by submitting Social Security’s Form HA-501 (Request for Hearing by Administrative Law Judge) online, through the mail or in person at a local Social Security office.

You’ll also need to submit two forms that you should already be familiar with, since you also needed them when you requested reconsideration of your initial application denial:

• Form SSA-3441 (Disability Report – Appeal): This form allows you to update the Social Security Administration (SSA) on any changes to your health and new treatments you’ve tried since your initial application and first request for appeal.
• Form SSA-827 (Authorization to Disclose Information to SSA): Information about your health and medical history is sensitive. This form gives the SSA permission to look at medical records and other evidence of your condition.

If you work with a disability lawyer, you’ll also need Form SSA-1696 (Appointment of Representative). This lets Social Security know that a qualified representative, like a disability lawyer, will assist with your claim.

The 60-day deadline that applied to reconsideration also applies to requesting a hearing and other stages of appeals, so you should act quickly.

Wait too long to ask for a hearing after your second denial, and you’ll generally need to start over with a new application for benefits. This means more waiting and a potential decrease in your back pay if you do get approved.

Remember, you can only request an ALJ hearing if you’ve been denied benefits twice. You cannot skip the reconsideration stage because you feel like you’ll have a better chance of winning benefits at your hearing.

Our Charleston disability attorneys can help you fill out the required forms and update your medical evidence.

We’ll look over your denial letter and help you understand why you were denied so that we can build a better case on appeal and show why you qualify for disability.

Get a FREE disability appeal telephone consultation.

What Happens at a Social Security Disability Hearing?

A disability hearing isn’t like a big court case with a jury and people spectating from the gallery.

If your hearing is in person, it will take place in a small room with the judge, a hearing reporter, your representative and any vocational or medical experts the judge has called.

You may not even be in the room with the judge because many hearings now take place online or over the phone.

Once the hearing is underway, the judge will ask you questions about your health and your ability to work.

They might ask what happened when you tried to work and what your responsibilities were at your previous jobs. They can ask about your job training and education.

This gives them an idea about whether switching to another type of job might be viable for you, despite your health limitations.

The administrative law judge may also ask about your daily routine. How do you spend a typical day? Can you do household chores? Do you need help with personal care, like getting dressed?

The judge wants a full picture of your health problems, your limitations and your capabilities.

If the judge calls a vocational or medical expert to testify, those experts will give opinions on your medical condition or on whether there are jobs someone with your health issues could still do.

The experts may cast doubt on whether you qualify for disability benefits, but your disability lawyer can push back, raising more points on cross-examination.

After the hearing, the judge decides whether to approve or deny your claim, usually in a written decision that arrives later.

If you get denied benefits again, there are still two more chances to appeal: the Appeals Council at Social Security and filing a suit in Federal District Court. Our team can assist you with both.

Do I Need a Charleston Disability Lawyer?

Hearings are often an applicant’s best chance of winning benefits, but successfully making your case to a judge isn’t easy.

You should have help from an experienced South Carolina disability attorney.

A lawyer from Robertson Wendt Disability can:

Help you tell your story, in your own words: It can be difficult to talk about your health problems and how they affect you on a daily basis. We’ll go over your symptoms, help you describe how they affect you and get you ready to tell your story to the administrative law judge.

Build your medical evidence: Before your hearing, you have the chance to add to your medical records. Social Security won’t automatically seek more records at this step. This is a key opportunity to address what might have gotten your application denied. With long experience in South Carolina, Robertson Wendt Disability is familiar with the local hospital systems and doctors and skilled at requesting the records you need. Our disability lawyers have good working relationships with medical providers who can provide opinions to support disability claims.

Prepare you for the kinds of questions the judge can ask: You don’t want to be tripped up by an unexpected question from the judge. Our team can help you prepare for lines of questioning about your health, your previous work and your current capabilities.

Cross-examine vocational and medical experts: A vocational expert may testify that there are still some jobs you can do despite your health, or a medical expert may say your health problems aren’t that serious.

Your lawyer can highlight inconsistencies in their testimony, bring out additional information and cast doubt on their ability to give an informed opinion on your limitations.

You need a reliable partner when you’re getting ready for a disability hearing.

A big national firm might pass your case file around to multiple staff members, so no one really gets to understand your story.

South Carolina disability lawyer Rob Wendt and his team will treat your claim with the personal attention it deserves.

We’ve helped thousands of South Carolinians in Charleston, Columbia, Beaufort, Florence and across the state win the benefits they needed to get back on solid ground.

Robertson Wendt Disability is so well respected in the state that even doctors will refer their patients to us when it looks like they need disability benefits.

Talk to our team about your disability hearing and see how we can help you make a compelling case for benefits.

Contact Us Today.