Social Security Wants To Study Attorney Fee Alternatives
From a contracting notice posted by the Social Security Administration: ... Disability claimants who have an Appointed Representative (AR) have an increased likelihood of award at the hearings level, but not earlier in the disability adjudication process. Experts have suggested that the current attorney fee structure, under which representatives receive 25 percent of claimants� back benefits up to $6,000, encourages representatives to work with claimants later in the disability adjudication process. In April of 2019, SSA convened a Technical Expert Panel (TEP) to discuss a potential demonstration that would alter the incentives for representatives to work with applicants at the reconsideration level of adjudication. The TEP discussed alternatives to the current attorney fee structure as well as opportunities to improve representatives� access to case information and documentation. The TEP provided SSA with recommendations to test as par...