hypothetical questions Archives - Social Security Disability | Expert Help

Over the past couple of years, Social Security has changed its procedures to offer less information to claimants and their lawyers. Staring in January, 2012, for example, SSA began deleting the name of the judge from hearing notices. Thus, when I meet with my client to prepare for an upcoming hearing, I cannot speak to the likes and dislikes of a particular judge because I do not know who that judge will be.

It is my understanding that the purpose of this particular change was to prevent “judge shopping” whereby a lawyer might tell his client to move rather than appear at a hearing before a judge who rarely grants cases. It seems to me that claimants and the entire disability adjudication system benefit more by having their lawyers better prepared than SSA benefits from rare instances of judge manipulation.

Another change I have noticed involves SSA directives discouraging judges from announcing their decisions. In years past, judges would sometimes announce favorable decisions in cases where the evidence was clear. Now, judges rarely announce their decisions directly even if all of the evidence and testimony points towards a favorable decision.

From my clients’ perspectives, of course, this mystery is extremely frustrating. Imagine waiting 2 years to get a hearing, then to discover that it may be another 6 weeks before a decision is announced. Continue reading →

In my law office, I always try to schedule a pre-hearing meeting with my client one to two weeks prior to my client’s hearing. I use this meeting to discuss the “big picture” issues and to practice asking and answering questions that my client is likely to face.

One line of questioning that always comes up relates to my client’s capacity to perform various physical activities, such as lifting, sitting, standing and walking. Physical activities like these are known as “exertional” activities by the Social Security Administration and one’s exertional capacity is almost always a factor in questions asked of the vocational witness.

For Social Security purposes, your exertional capacity is defined as follows:

Sedentary: Requires the ability to sit up to six hours in an eight hour work day, lift light objects such as files and paperwork frequently during the day, and objects weighing up to 10 pounds occasionally during the day.

Light: Requires the ability to stand up to six hours in an eight hour work day, lift up to 10 pounds frequently and up to 20 pounds occasionally.

Medium: Requires the ability to stand up to six hours in an eight hour work day, lift up to 25 pounds frequently and 50 pounds occasionally.

Heavy: Same standing as light and medium, lifting heavier than medium.

As you can see, each of these definitions includes some very specific numbers. When you prepare to testify, you will need to be prepared to discuss your capacities. Continue reading →

Ginsberg Law Offices

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