SO, YOU HAVE A TOUGH JUDGE?

Disability hearings are held by Administrative Law Judges (ALJs). They come in all shapes, sizes, personalities and with widely varying award rates, even though they all hear the same type of cases.

Judges are assigned to your case at random. Neither the claimant or representative gets to choose the judge.

Sometimes you get a judge who is tough, or just difficult. These judges have a reputation in the legal community of being poor payers, and sometimes problematic and difficult to deal with.

So, how do you deal with one of these judges at a hearing?

Hopefully, you have hired an attorney or representative who is accustomed to dealing with judges.

Aside from that, here are a few suggestions that will help you in ANY disability hearing, even if you have a "tough" judge.

1. Prepare the case well and provide hard-hitting evidence that is difficult to ignore.

2. Find out what the judge's pet peeves, likes and dislikes are. Tailor your case to give the judge what he/she wants and needs to make a decision.

3. Remain polite and respectful to the judge at all times. It only makes matters worse to lose your temper or to break down and get emotional. This never helps your case and it usually goes against you.

4. Remember, you are not on trial. You are not accused of a crime. You have only applied for Social Security disability benefits. The government deducted tax from your paychecks to pay the premiums on this coverage. You are here to explain why you meet the requirements to receive a benefit. So, lighten up and relax a little. The less tense you are, the easier it will be to answer questions clearly and present yourself in a calm, controlled manner.

5. Finally, spend some time getting prepared for the hearing. Sit down with your representative for about 1 hour--preferably a few days before the hearing--and find out what to expect, what kind of questions you could be asked, and how the hearing will go. This makes you much less anxious on the day of the hearing and helps present a good case.