Why You Should Talk to an Attorney Before Applying for Disability Benefits

January 22, 2018

If you’re considering applying for Social Security disability benefits, you may try to research on your own whether or not you would be a good candidate. There are plenty of resources online that can help you learn what Social Security’s standards are for disability and whether your experiences match up with their criteria. You can even read Social Security’s listing of impairments for yourself on their website.

But there’s a lot of information out there, and it can be hard to take it all in and compare it to your own experience. The world of Social Security is incredibly complex, and it’s difficult to fully appreciate the road ahead of you if you do decide to apply.

Indiana disability attorneys work with Social Security all day, every day. They know what a good candidate for disability benefits looks like, and they know the path ahead of you if you choose to apply.

Speaking with an attorney can help you in your decision to apply for disability benefits. Here are three reasons to speak with an attorney first.

1. Talking with an Attorney Is Free

At Hensley Legal Group, we offer free consultations. That means you can call us anytime or contact us online, and we can go over your case and let you know what your options are.

Initially, you’ll likely speak with one of our intake specialists. They’ll gather your information for the attorney so when the attorney calls you, he or she will already know the details of your case.

The only person who can give you official legal advice is an attorney. Intake specialists can let you know if your case isn’t one that we would be able to help with, but they can’t tell you what you should do next. They can, however, give you the contact information of another law firm or legal service that may be able to help you if we cannot.

You’ll never be charged for calling our office. Even if you call multiple times with different questions, we’ll always do our best to answer at no charge to you.

2. Attorneys Have Been Through This Before

It can be difficult to separate fact from fiction online. Not only that, but even if you do find a credible source, like Social Security’s listing of impairments, the content is often difficult to understand. It’s written for government bureaucrats, not everyday people.

That’s where an attorney can help. They’ve read the dense government texts so you don’t have to. Instead of combing through Social Security’s information yourself, you can simply give an attorney the details of your case and they’ll know what Social Security has to say about a case like yours. They can also answer your questions much more thoroughly and accurately than a Google search box can.

3. Attorneys Can Help You Apply

If you speak with an attorney and they decide your case looks promising, they can file your initial application for you or help you file it yourself.

No matter where you are in your case, an attorney can help. If you’ve been denied, an attorney can file your paperwork to appeal the denial on time before the strict 60-day deadline. If you’re waiting for a hearing, an attorney can build a case for you and represent you at the hearing so you don’t have to represent yourself.

Talking to an attorney is free, but hiring an attorney is a little more complicated. If you hire an attorney and they don’t win your case, you won’t owe a single penny. If your attorney wins your case and you get approved for benefits, your attorney will receive a percentage of your past due benefits (the benefits that accumulated from the months or years you had to wait between applying for disability and getting approved).

Social Security regulates this percentage, however, so you don’t have to worry about an attorney taking away all of your past-due benefits. Your attorney will only earn 25 percent of your past due benefits, capped at $6,000. That means that even if you received, for example, $40,000 in past due benefits, and 25 percent of that would be $10,000, your attorney would still only receive $6,000.

Help from an Indiana Social Security Disability Lawyer

Applying for disability benefits is a long, frustrating process. You shouldn’t have to do it alone. Call Hensley Legal Group today or contact us online for a free consultation. Be sure to download our free book, Eight Mistakes to Avoid When Applying for Social Security Disability Benefits.