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We currently have two offices within the Inland Empire to serve you. If you are in need of immediate assistance, please call our office. You may also send us an email with the form provided below. We look forward to service you!

Call Our Offices:

Riverside

Riverside

4780 Arlington Ave

Riverside, California 92504

United States (US)

Phone: 951-343-3400

Victorville

Victorville

15437 Anacapa Rd

Victorville, California 92392

United States (US)

Phone: (760) 245-8984

San Bernardino

San Bernardino

198 North Arrowhead Ave.

San Bernardino, California 92408

United States (US)

Phone: (909) 888-7000

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What Can I Do If a Social Security Judge Denies My Disability Claim?

If you have applied for Social Security Disability Insurance Benefits (DIB) or Supplemental Security Income (SSI) and have been denied initially and on reconsideration, you have the right to appeal that denial to an Administrative Law Judge (ALJ).

Getting an ALJ Hearing

Typically, it will take up to two years to get a hearing with an ALJ. The ALJ might find you disabled and award benefits, or he or she might once again find that you are not disabled under the Social Security rules.

While there are many attorneys and representatives who take cases at the initial application, reconsideration and hearing stages, there are very few attorneys who will continue helping you with your case if it is denied by an ALJ.

After the Hearing: The Appeals Council

If an ALJ denies your claim for disability/SSI benefits, do not despair. It is still possible to win your case and eventually get benefits; however, it is going to take some more time.

The next step after an ALJ denies your claim is to file a Request for Review of that ALJ denial to the Social Security Appeals Council. This is done either in writing or online, and the appeals council will review the ALJ’s decision to look for legal errors.

Do not get your hopes up at this stage of the process, because the Appeals Council denies about 90 percent of the appeals at this stage. If you are one of the lucky ones, your case will be remanded to an ALJ for another hearing, at which time you will have a chance once again to present your case to an ALJ.

However, if the Appeals Council denies your case, which is the most likely result, you must decide whether you want to file a civil action in the US District Court where you reside. You actually have a better chance of success at the District Court level than at the Appeals Council level.

The Riverside Social Security Attorney Taking Your Case to the Next Level

If an ALJ denies one of my clients’ cases, I will almost always appeal that case up to the US District Court, and quite often I will be able to get the case remanded to an ALJ for a new hearing and a new decision, which frequently is in my client’s favor.

If a claimant received an unfavorable decision from an ALJ and they were represented by another Riverside Social Security attorney at the hearing, I will consider taking the case and filing the appeals to both the Appeals Council and the US District Court. However, I must review the facts of the case and the ALJ’s decision before I will agree to represent that claimant.

If it appears to me that errors were made and the facts of the case were not properly considered, I will usually agree to help that claimant with their appeal.

As your local Riverside Social Security attorney, I’ll work with you to give your claim the very best chance of being approved, even when that means appealing an ALJ decision or filing a case in US District Court.

When Can You File for Social Security Disability or Supplemental Security Income?

There is a lot of misinformation circulating about when you can file for Social Security Disability or Supplemental Security Income benefits, or both.

You can, in fact, file for these benefits at any time; however, depending on your specific life circumstances at the time you file, various factors might affect whether you will qualify for benefits, as well as how much money you might receive.

File for Disability Benefits If These Factors Apply

If you are receiving worker’s compensation benefits or state disability benefits, you can apply for Social Security Disability Insurance benefits (DIB) and Supplemental Security Income (SSI) while you are still receiving worker’s comp or state disability benefits (or both). You do not have to wait for those benefits to run out to apply for DIB or SSI.

If you have an impairment that is totally disabling and not expected to substantially improve in less than one year, you can and should apply for DIB/SSI benefits as soon as possible.

Conditions that Exclude You from Being Eligible for Benefits

Because these benefits are reserved for those with disabilities that prevent them from working, there is really no point in filing for benefits if you are working. You are not able to work full-time and receive disability benefits at the same time, except in very rare circumstances. So applying for disability benefits will really only be useful to you if you are unable to work.

If you are receiving unemployment benefits, you most likely will not be able to obtain DIB/SSI benefits while you are receiving the unemployment benefits. But you can still apply for DIB/SSI, and in most cases you should apply, so long as you do in fact have an impairment or impairments which have lasted or are expected to last for longer than one year and are totally disabling.

Remember, the sooner you apply, the sooner you will get awarded benefits, and if you are denied, the sooner you can appeal to have your claim decided by an Administrative Law Judge. So, because of the length of time it takes for a case to get approved, it may be worth it to begin the application process before your unemployment benefits have ended if you meet the other qualifications to receive DIB.

Work with a San Bernardino Social Security Attorney

If you have questions about which factors and work circumstances will affect your case or prevent you from receiving benefits, William M. Kuntz, a trusted San Bernardino Social Security attorney, can assist you in evaluating your claim and moving it forward.

Give us a call at 951-373-3756 or contact us here to work with your local San Bernardino Social Security attorney for expert assistance on your case.

Can I Qualify for SSDI or SSI if I Am Able to Work?

Generally, in order to be eligible for Social Security Disability Insurance Benefits (DIB) or Supplemental Security Income (SSI), Social Security requires that you prove that you have one or more impairments which prevent you from engaging in significant gainful activity for at least one year.

In other words, you have to have an impairment or impairments which keep you from working for at least one year.

Although that rule seems cut-and-dry, there are some specific variables and circumstances to consider, especially how restricted your ability to work is and whether those restrictions fall within those allowed according to your age group.

[Read More…]

Social Security Administrative Law Judge Hearings in the Time of COVID-19

Normally when someone applies for Social Security Disability Insurance Benefits (DIB) or Supplemental Security Income (SSI), he or she is either found disabled and entitled to benefits, or that individual has to file a number of appeals in order to eventually get approved for benefits.

After applying for benefits and being initially denied, then being denied for reconsideration, the third step of this process involves a hearing with an administrative law judge (ALJ).

[Read More…]

Steps of an SSDI or SSI Claim

When you file for Social Security disability benefits and/or SSI, your case may have to pass through several different steps of the claims process in order to be approved. Following are the steps that make up the Social Security disability and/or SSI claims process:

1. Initial Application

The first step in submitting a claim for either Social Security disability benefits and/or SSI is to file an application with the Social Security Administration (SSA), either online or in person. The Social Security Administration generally awards payment to between 40% and 50% of initial applicants for disability benefits. Normally, the initial determination in a claim for disability benefits takes anywhere from 30 to 120 days.

2. Request for Reconsideration

If your application for disability benefits is denied by the SSA, it is then necessary to file a request for reconsideration in order to keep your case going and have any chance of eventually obtaining disability benefits. You have 60 days from the initial denial letter in which to file a request for reconsideration. Normally, a request for reconsideration takes anywhere from 30 to 120 days to get a response from the administration.

Generally, the SSA denies approximately 90% of the requests for reconsideration. So if someone receives an initial denial, it is highly likely they will also receive a denial on the request for reconsideration, which makes it then necessary to file a request for hearing by an administrative law judge in order to keep their claim alive.

3. Request a Hearing with an Administrative Law Judge

A request for hearing by an administrative law judge must be filed within 60 days of receiving the request for reconsideration denial from the SSA. Presently, it is taking on average between one year and one and a half years to obtain a hearing with an administrative law judge (ALJ) after the request for hearing is filed. For most people, this is the hardest part of the claims process, due to the lengthy delay in getting a court date to have a judge listen to and decide your claim.

4. Request for Review by the Appeals Council

Once the administrative law judge makes a decision in your case, if it is favorable, you enter into pay status and will start receiving your disability benefits. If the ALJ denies your claim, it would be necessary to then file a request for review of the ALJ’s unfavorable decision with the Social Security Appeals Council in Virginia. The request for review must be filed within 60 days of the ALJ’s unfavorable decision, and it can often take over a year to receive a response from the Social Security Appeals Council at this step of the process.

5. Civil Action in US District Court

If the appeals council denies your appeal, it would then be necessary to file a civil action in the United States district court where you live in order to keep your claim ongoing and have any chance of getting benefits. Alternatively, the appeals council can decide in your favor and send the case back to the administrative law judge for a supplemental hearing, at which time the administrative law judge will hear more evidence and render a new decision in your case.

However, if the appeals council once again denies your case and it is necessary to file a civil action in the US district court where you live, you must hire an attorney to assist you if you have not already done so. This is because procedures are very complicated and technical at this step of the appeals process, and they require interaction with the United States Attorney’s office and federal judges.

The earlier you hire a disability attorney to assist in your claim for Social Security Disability Insurance benefits and/or SSI, the better it will be for your claim. A qualified attorney can assist in fully and properly developing the medical evidence of record in your case and giving you the best chance of success at each step of the claims process.

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Call Our Offices:

Riverside

Victorville

San Bernardino

Send us an Email:

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Latest News

What Can I Do If a Social Security Judge Denies My Disability Claim?

When Can You File for Social Security Disability or Supplemental Security Income?

Can I Qualify for SSDI or SSI if I Am Able to Work?

Social Security Administrative Law Judge Hearings in the Time of COVID-19

Steps of an SSDI or SSI Claim

Our Offices

Riverside

Victorville

San Bernardino