Disability Attorney or Disability Advocate?

 Posted on January 14, 2012 in Social Security Disability

Should you hire a Social Security disability attorney or a Social Security disability advocate to help you with your disability benefits claim?

There are typically relatively strong opinions when asking this question to someone who practices in the field of administrative law.  As a Social Security disability attorney, my opinion is relatively biased. That said, it really boils down to the individual you are speaking to.  Maybe as a claimant you feel a better connection with a particular person over another. Maybe you feel as though one representative will be in contact with you more often, leading you to lean one way over another.

In general, I am inclined to suggest researching disability lawyers before looking into hiring an advocate.  The Social Security Administration regulates the fees that can be charged when representing claimants with disability claims.  Whether you hire the worst or best representative, if he or she wins your case you will be paying that individual the exact same amount.  If your going to pay the same amount of money to someone when you win, wouldn't you rather hire the best representative that your money can buy?

In other words, let's say that you have a heart attack and are looking to immediately hire a cardiologist.  Now let's further imagine that every cardiologist in the country charges the exact same amount for their services. Would you rather hire a cardiologist who just finished his or her residency or would you want to hire the top cardiologist in the country?

When you apply for Social Security disability benefits, you have the ability to seek out the very best experienced attorney to represent you for the same price it would cost to hire a brand new non-attorney representative. It is my personal opinion that it would make the most sense to hire an experienced disability attorney over a disability advocate.