WORK TO DO AFTER THE HEARING

Many people assume that a Social Security disability case is over when the hearing has been held.  This isn't always the case.  Often there is post hearing work that should be done to achieve the best chance of a favorable decision.

Everyone at a disability hearing works under pressure.  This includes the claimant, the representative, the vocational expert and even the administrative law judge.  Hearings are generally limited to less than one hour.  The judge will ask questions that place the claimant under stress to answer correctly.  The representative or attorney will be asked to respond to procedural issues or points of law that place him or her under pressure.  The judge must constantly conduct the hearing so that it follows Social Security laws, rules and regulations.  Further, the judge must form accurate hypothetical questions for the vocational expert based on the medical and vocational evidence in the file and upon the claimant's testimony.  The vocational expert then has less than a minute to respond to complicated hypothetical questions with very complicated sets of facts.

After the hearing is over and the pressure is off - facts and responses will come to mind that may not have occurred during the hearing.  Therefore, it is fitting for the representative to submit a concise post hearing brief or letter that brings up points of law, facts that may have been missed during testimony or more detailed answers to the judge's questions.  There may be challenges or clarifications that need to be made toward the vocational expert's testimony.

Finally, if there is new evidence, it should be submitted as promptly as possible after the hearing.  As a rule, it will take the judge about 45 days to reach a decision - after the hearing is over.  That provides a window of opportunity to clear up any questions or concerns that came up during the hearing.  Obviously, if you know that post hearing work is in order you should inform the judge during the hearing and ask for a specific period of time to leave the record open for submission of new evidence.