Winning at a Social Security Disability Hearing

How to prove you are disabled
and win disability benefits

It can take well over a year after requesting a disability hearing for your case to be heard before an administrative judge. In addition, if you are at the stage where you have requested a hearing, you have most likely already waited many months to receive a decision at the two lower levels of consideration, the initial claim and the request for reconsideration appeal with disability determination services.

All of this adds up to a lengthy, often financially disastrous period of time without benefits for an individual who is unable to work. It is important, then, that when your case finally comes before a judge, you have an idea of what the odds are that you will win your case.

The good new is that a claim for disability is more likely to be approved by a judge at a federal disability hearing than by a disability examiner working for your state disability determination agency (while disability claims are taken in local social security office, in each state they are sent to a DDS, or disability determination services agency for processing). Statistics show that those filing for social security disability (SSD) or SSI benefits are far more likely to be approved when they use the appeals process than when they start over with a new claim.

Although the rate of disability approval does vary from state to state, approximately 50 percent of all cases heard at social security hearings before an administrative judge are approved. This is a composite number. The actual breakdown, according to federal statistics, is that approximately 40 percent of unrepresented claimants will win at a hearing while as much as 62 percent of claimants will win benefits following a hearing.

Older applicants fare best at this level, because the grid used to determine a person’s ability to obtain suitable employment or to learn a new trade tends to support the fact that fewer job options are available to those 50 and older. Having said that, though, younger individuals are equally likely to win their claims as long as their medical records establish that they have severe limitations (of a physical or mental nature, or both) that rule out their ability to perform their past work or any other type of work that their education and skills might suit them for.

Even when a claimant is capable of representing their own case at a hearing, some judges are simply more likely to seriously consider evidence when it is presented by a lawyer. Unfortunately, disability decisions, like all decisions made by human beings, are not entirely objective.

If it was just a matter of reviewing the evidence without some level of interpretation, then your claim would be either approved or denied, and there would be no need for an appeals process. Make sure that when your case comes before a judge it is presented in the best, most professional light possible and you can only increase the odds of winning at a social security disability hearing.

Continue to Part 2: Preparing for a Disability Hearing to Win Social Security or SSI Benefits

Return to: SSDRC, or the Questions, Answers, Tips, and Advice page

Individual Questions and Answers

What happens if my SSI or Social Security Disability Application is denied?

Can you apply for disability if you have a mental condition ?

How do you apply for disability if you have depression problems ?

Why Is It So Hard For People To Get Social Security Disability?

Applying for disability benefits in Pennsylvania

Recent Medical Records for a Social Security Disability or SSI case

Proving Functional Limitations and why this is Important on a Disability Case

How long does it take to appeal a disability case ?

How do you prove your disability case if you have a mental condition?

Filing a Disability Appeal When you are not Represented by a Disability Lawyer or Disability Representative

Can you get temporary Social Security disability or SSI benefits ?

How to qualify for disability - The Process of Qualifying for Benefits

What are the questions that get asked at a social security disability or SSI hearing?

Social Security Temporary Disability - Can I get temporary benefits?

SSI for children

Questions about Disability Lawyers and Hiring a Disability Attorney

What kind of cases win disability benefits?

Can you file for Social Security disability for a mental disorder or problem?

Can you apply for SSI for a learning disability ?

To Win Benefits, You may have to Appeal a Social Security Disability Denial or SSI denial

Social Security Disability SSI and Activities of Daily Living

Disability Claims Through Social Security — How Long is the Process?

Receiving a Notice of Denial on a Social Security Disability or SSI Case

If you receive a Social Security Disability Denial quickly does that mean the case is weak?

Are SSI and Social Security Disability Requirements Tougher For Mental Claims?

Social Security Disability Mental Testing

Can you get temporary Social Security disability or SSI benefits ?

Migraines, Social Security Disability, and Applying for Benefits

When I Apply for Disability - Should I apply for social Security disability or SSI?

Can You Apply For Disability When You Lose Your Job?

How Do You Qualify For Disability If You Don’t Have Money To Go To the Doctor?

Hiring a Qualified Disability Lawyer in Indiana

Can You Qualify for Disability if you did not work much?

How many Social Security Disability appeals do you get ?

What Are The Steps To Applying For Disability Benefits from Social Security?

Applying for disability benefits in Maryland

When you Apply for Social Security do you get Medicare?

How do you Apply for SSI?

SSD and SSI are Federal Programs

The title II Social Security Disability and title 16 SSI Disability programs operate under federal guidelines and, therefore, the program requirements--medical and non-medical--apply to all states:

Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Idaho, Indiana, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, West Virginia, Wisconsin, Wyoming

Recent approval and denial statistics for various states can be viewed here:

Social Security Disability, SSI Approval and Denial Statistics by state

Special Section: Disability Lawyers and unnecessary claim denials