What Should I Expect at My Disability Hearing?

Des Moines disability attorneyAs your Des Moines disability attorney will tell you, your Social Security disability hearing will not be in a courtroom like you see on television and will not be a formal trial like you see on television. Disability hearings have been designed to be a non-threatening experience. This is so that you, the claimant, can relax as much as possible and provide your best testimony.

Your hearing will take place in a conference room. There will be a conference table and a desk for the judge. The judge’s assistant will also be present. The judge’s assistant is responsible for operating the computer and recording equipment. The equipment is used to record your hearing.

You and your Des Moines disability attorney will be seated at a conference table. Your judge may or may not call additional witnesses such as a vocational expert or a doctor to testify about your disability. Those witnesses will also be seated at the conference table.

Your hearing will be private. This means that anyone present other than your Des Moines disability attorney, the judge, and the judge’s staff must have your permission to be present. You are allowed to bring witnesses to testify for you and observers to support you.

Even though your hearing is informal, there are still a couple of rules that have to be followed. You and all the witnesses who testify must do so under oath. When you testify you cannot ask anyone else in the room to help you answer questions. Your friends and other witnesses will not be allowed to assist you during your testimony. Only one person at a time may testify.

If you have questions about your upcoming hearing or are interested in filing for disability benefits contact Des Moines disability attorney Tripp P.C. for a legal consultation.