If you built your own house, or if you cut your own firewood or fix your own car – or used to – then you know that you can do many things by yourself. No law requires you to have a representative, and many Vermont Social Security claimants handle their own appeals. However, simply because you can handle your own appeal does not mean you should. Social Security law is complicated, and the rules the judge must apply can be confusing. You must rely on medical and vocational evidence, which can be hard to acquire and understand. A local Vermont attorney, with experience in Vermont disability law, will be able to gather the relevant evidence, tie that evidence to the law, and help you persuasively present your case to the judge.

I work only in Vermont, protecting the rights of disabled Vermonters. If you are feeling anxious or frustrated after dealing with the Social Security Administration on your own, please complete the Free Claim Evaluation form to your right, or contact me directly by phone or email. I will be happy to meet with you in person to discuss your case.

Most clients prefer … and most lawyers offer … a “contingent fee,” a fee paid only if they win. The usual fee is 25% (one-quarter) of back benefits up to a maximum amount set by SSA, which is currently $6,000. The fee comes from those benefits that build up by the time you are found disabled and benefits are paid. No fee comes out of current monthly benefits.

Although the usual fee will not normally exceed the maximum fee of $6,000, if your lawyer has to appeal after the first administrative law judge hearing, your contract might allow for a fee greater than $6,000. Even in this circumstance, though, your fee is likely to not be greater than 25% of back benefits.

In addition to the fee, many attorneys expect you to pay the expense of gathering medical records, obtaining medical opinion letters, etc.

Middlebury Office

111 S. Pleasant Street

Middlebury, Vermont 05753

Telephone (802) 388-6356

Toll free (888) 350-3644

Fax (802) 388-6149

Once it is determined that you have a “disability,” as defined above, there are two paths to an award of Vermont disability benefits. Depending on the facts of your case, you must prove that either:

1. Your impairment “meets or medically equals” an impairment described in the Social Security Listing of Impairments. (The “Listings” is found in the Social Security regulations; it is a set of criteria for various physical and mental impairments.) If your condition meets or equals a condition described in the Listings, then your impairment is deemed so severe that you will be awarded Vermont disability benefits based on this medical determination alone. Or
2. Considering your age, education, work experience and medical condition, you are unable to do the work you did before you became disabled or any other type of work. This is a medical-vocational determination.