WHY YOU SHOULD HIRE A DISABILITY LAWYER NOT A NON-ATTORNEY ADVOCATE

Either way the person you hire will not be paid unless you win your disability claim; likewise, both are paid directly by the Social Security Administration (SSA) out of your back payment benefits. Both attorneys and non-attorney advocates are entitled to the same.

The biggest differences between an attorney and a non-attorney advocate (or representative) are their education levels and training.

Attorney. To become an attorney, you must have the following qualifications:

• a bachelor’s degree (four-year college degree)
• a juris doctorate (J.D.) degree (usually a three-year program of legal studies), and
• admission to a state bar (which requires passing a rigorous bar exam)

Attorneys then practice law and learn how to zealously cross examine witnesses; including the expert witnesses hired by the SSA who will testify at your hearing.

Non-attorney advocate. The SSA has established the following requirements to get paid directly by Social Security for acting as a non-attorney representative/advocate:

• a bachelor’s degree or “equivalent qualifications derived from training and work experience”–so not even a college degree is needed.
• passage of a criminal background check
• professional liability insurance
• passage of a written exam administered by the SSA, and
• completion of continuing education courses.

When deciding whether to hire a lawyer versus an “advocate,”you should consider the following pros of hiring a lawyer.

• Attorneys are bound by professional conduct rules and ethical obligations to zealously represent their clients.“Advocates”are not.
• Attorney are bound to keep anything you tell them confidential due to the attorney-client privilege. There is no attorney-client privilege with an “advocate.”
• An attorney has many years of specialized training, which will better enable them to spot and resolve potential legal issues and to craft legal theories for reasons you should get benefits.
• An “advocate”cannot appeal your claim to the federal district court level, and
• You can file a complaint against an attorney through your state’s grievance commission if you feel your attorney did not act in your best interest; there is no such recourse with non-attorney representatives.

It is important to you that your representative is an experienced and licensed attorney. Ask directly whether he or she is a member of the bar, because non-attorney representative firms can use misleading titles such as:

• legal representative
• claimant representative
• disability representative, or
• disability advocate.