Need help on your Colorado Social Security disability case? Contact lawyer Tomasz Stasiuk on http://www.stasiukfirm.com/
You call one attorney looking for help on a Social Security problem.
I can’t help you.
You call another attorney.
We aren’t taking any new Social Security cases.
You make one more call.
We don’t do Social Security cases anymore.
You may soon not be able to find an attorney to take a Social Security case. Why? Social Security is dropping the ball on processing a form which allows attorneys to be paid. And if attorneys cannot get paid for their work helping people with Social Security problem, they won’t be able to keep taking Social Security cases.
Social Security disability attorneys typically work on the standard Social Security fee agreement: 25% of back benefits, up to a $5,300.00 cap. If they lose, they do not get paid. Social Security pays the fees directly to the attorney. As a client, the only thing you may need to pay, are expenses related to the case such as the cost of medical records.
Beginning in 2007, Social Security required attorney’s who want to be paid by Social Security if they win to file a new form: SSA-1695 Identifying Information for Possible Direct Payment of Authorized Fees. Without this form, Social Security will not pay the attorney.
Here is the problem: Social Security is not processing the 1695 forms attorneys send in. This means the attorneys cannot be paid by Social Security. The National Organization of Social Security Claimant’s Representatives (NOSSCR) issued a release on January 29, 2008 stating:
.. many district offices are not routinely sending the acknowledgment form, although they should be. …. In other words, because there is no SSA-1695 form on record, your fees will not be withheld.
So, we only get paid if we win, but even if we win, we still may not get paid. You can guess what this will mean for the number of attorneys willing to take Social Security cases.
This can be fixed if the local Social Security offices process the 1695 form by entering the information and sending back an acknowledgment form. However, with many local offices overwhelmed and understaffed, will this really be a priority?
Am I being alarmist? This has happened in other areas of law. Try to find an attorney to handle a Federal Workers’ Compensation case. Or, look at VA cases. Until recently, the most an attorney could charge in a Veterans Administration case was $10, which pretty much guaranteed you could not find an attorney to help you fight the VA.
The post What if no one would help you on your Social Security case? appeared first on Colorado Social Security Disability Benefits Help.