Take Control of Your Future with Our Disability Advocates

Usually, you don’t. Social Security deducts the attorney’s fee (up to $6,000) from your first disability check (your award of back pay) before it sends the award of back pay to you.

Social Security disability lawyers’ fees are limited to 25% of past-due benefits, up to a maximum of $6,000. An attorney will be paid only out of your past-due benefits, or “back pay.” If no back benefits are awarded, the attorney will not receive a fee. This is called a contingency fee agreement. You and your attorney sign the agreement and file it with Social Security to ensure that it satisfies the SSA’s guidelines. Some attorneys ask you to pay a nominal amount for costs at the beginning of your case. We generally do not ask for costs upfront and do so only when we must pay for your medical records or your doctor’s opinions.

Any Social Security disability claim can take quite a long time from start to finish, and processing time can vary widely from one case to the next. For individuals pursuing disability at the initial claim level, the time spent waiting for an initial answer can exceed three to four months. Waits of over a year for an initial decision on a disability claim are a bit unusual, but cases have been known to take that long. In most cases, an initial claim will probably be decided in under 120 days. Unfortunately, most claims are denied after the initial application, and the disability claimant must appeal. The entire appeal process can stretch out to more than two years and perhaps as long as three years for a hearing.

Disability is defined by documentation of a physical and/or mental condition which prevents you from performing “substantial gainful activity” (SGA). SGA basically means work performed in exchange for payment. A disability is defined as a mental and/or physical condition expected to last at least 12 months or to result in death. Whether one is eligible for disability is a matter subject to some interpretation. Although your doctor may have advised you not to work, or you may feel too ill to work, the Social Security Administration (SSA) will not necessarily agree that you are disabled. The SSA initially evaluates disability based on a catalog of physical and mental conditions called a “Listing of Impairments.” Even if you can’t show that your condition is exactly as described in the listing, it is still possible to prove that you are disabled. Furthermore, even if you are denied benefits because Social Security says you are not disabled, you have a good chance of winning on appeal. An attorney can be very helpful at a hearing.

If your application is approved, you will receive monthly Social Security Disability Insurance payments in an amount based on your personal earnings record. Social Security benefits statements are sent by mail at five-year intervals to workers who haven’t signed up for statements online. Approved SSDI applicants also receive Medicare benefits after 24 months, beginning the month of first eligibility for a monthly disability benefit.