Do I Need An Attorney to File for Social Security Disability?

The short answer is “no”, but I would highly recommend having an attorney help you with your application for Disability Insurance Benefits.

For starters, very few attorneys will take the time to assist you with your application. If you are seeking an attorney before you have applied, select an attorney who is willing to apply for you online. Assisting you with the online application helps the attorney get to know you and your claim better. There is also never a charge to apply unless you are successful in getting retroactive back pay.

I assist clients with applications several times per week and can help address problems in the application before they become problems with the claim for benefits. The most common problem I address is misidentification of past work. Claimants often want to embellish their “resume” for Social Security and identify past work as managerial in nature. Simply adding the word “Lead” or “Supervisor” to the job title of “Stocker” can have disastrous effects on the claim due to a difference in transferable skills to other work. I have seen claims that waited two years to get to a judge just to explain that what they put on the application as “Assistant Manager” (light work) was really a “Stock Clerk” (heavy work) position in a convenient store. Just knowing how to properly classify past work according to Social Security’s rules may have saved that claimant almost two years of wait time.

So while you may not need an attorney to do your application for you, it is always best to get an attorney involved as quickly as possible in your application process. If you would like assistance in applying for your Social Security Disability benefits online, please contact Michles & Booth for a free initial consultation. We are happy to help.

*** Please note that only the Social Security Administration can take an application for Supplemental Security Benefits. If you are not eligible for Social Security Disability benefits due to lack of work credits, an attorney will not be able to perform your online application for you.