Social Security Disability Law: News and Facts

A vocational expert (VE) is an expert witness called to testify at your disability hearing. A VE is present at about 85% of disability hearings. Unfortunately you and your attorney do not get to chose the vocational expert. Each Social Security Administration Regional Office maintains a roster of VEs who have agreed to provide opinion testimony. The VE expert is an authority on vocational rehabilitation, vocational and earning capacity, lost earnings, cost of replacement labor and lost ability/time in performing household services. Social Security judges mainly call a vocational expert to testify regarding vocational rehabilitation. This is because if you do not meet a disability listing, then the Social Security Administration (SSA) must determine whether you can do your past work. If not, then they will consider whether there are any other types of jobs you can do in the national economy. This is all evaluated by taking into consideration your functional limitations, both physical an...

 Timely, Accurate, and Adequate Medical Evidence To many times I speak with potential clients or people who are representing themselves and they have not gone to the right doctors or taken the proper tests or they have a hearing scheduled and they have not updated any of their medical records. People expect social security to update their medical records. Social Security does not update medical records once the case is at hearing stage unless you ask for help. You are expected to update your own medical records. You must submit all the medical records whether they are favorable or unfavorable to your case. You must have all medical records filed at least 5 business days prior to your hearing.  Providing the Social Security Administration with timely, accurate, and adequate medical evidence will not only increase your chances for approval for your initial application but also will also greatly reduce or potentially eliminate the need for the SSA to gather additional medical doc...