The Importance of Attending Your SSDI Hearing
Many of our clients often ask whether they are required to go to their disability SSDI hearing. The answer is always yes!
What Is The Hearing For?
You have a hearing so that the Administrative Law Judge (ALJ) can determine how your medical conditions affect you and prevent you from working. While the ALJ has all the medical records that we have been able to put together to help make your case, it is just as important for the ALJ to see and hear from you in person, so that you can explain exactly what you are going through each and every day as a result of your conditions.
In other words, the hearing is your opportunity to explain to the judge, face to face, why you are disabled and entitled to disability benefits. If you don’t go to the hearing, an ALJ will have little to go on when figuring out how your conditions cause you limitations in your day to day life.
Even more importantly – if you don’t go to your Social Security Disability Hearing, the ALJ can dismiss your Disability Claim. If that happens, it means that you could lose your claim, have to restart the application process from the beginning, and not receive the back pay that you would otherwise have been entitled to.
If You Don’t Show Up…
If you fail to show up at your hearing, the legal team from Citizens Disability will try to prevent the ALJ from dismissing your case by demonstrating that you had “good cause” for your failure to show up. Examples of good cause include not receiving proper notice from Social Security about the date and time of the hearing, an “unforeseeable event” that did not give us time to notify the ALJ and ask for a postponement (such as a hospitalization), or if another advocate withdraws representation shortly before the scheduled hearing. If the ALJ does not accept our good cause explanation, we can still appeal his or her decision.
Don’t Take The Chance
So once again, yes, you do have to go to your Social Security Disability Hearing! If you don’t show up, the Social Security Disability Judge can dismiss your claim and you will have to start the long application process all over again.
Since 2010, Citizens Disability has been America’s premier Social Security Disability advocate. Our mission is to give a voice to the millions of Americans who are disabled and unable to work, helping them receive the Social Security Disability benefits to which they may be entitled. We have helped tens of thousands of individuals with their SSDI claims. Your success is our mission.
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It is easy to get started. No upfront costs – You only pay if we win!
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