Pennsylvania Workers Compensation Attorney Blog

Before you hire a law firm or non-attorney advocate to represent you in your Disability/SSI Claim, you should three important questions:

1. Will I be represented by an attorney at my hearing?

The Social Security Administration changed their regulations so that people can be represented by a non-attorney (lawyer). If you are told that you will be represented by an "advocate" at your hearing, keep in mind that that the term "advocate" does not necessarily mean that you will be represented by an attorney; although you may well be charged the same amount that you would pay to a lawyer. Our firm has received telephone calls from people who were represented at the hearing by an "advocate" or a paralegal and did not learn that this person was not an attorney until the Judge informed them. At that point they were given the option as to whether or not they wanted to proceed with the hearing. After waiting a year or more for hearing. it became a very difficult decision. You should know up front whether or not you will be
represented by an attorney/lawyer at the hearing.

2. Do I have to pay costs even if I lose my case?

Some law firms/advocate groups are requiring either an up front payment for costs in representing you to reimburse such things as parking. gas money or the cost of copies of medical records. At Kunkel & Fink, LLP, we do not require you to provide any up front costs and, if you lose your claim, you will not be required to pay anything to our firm. including any costs that we incurred to obtain your medical records

3. Does the attorney or non-attorney advocate that will represent me at my hearing have experience practicing before the Judges sitting in western Pennsylvania?

There are many nationwide law firms that do not have offices in Pennsylvania that are sending in a "representative" from another state to appear at your bearing. Our firm has received several complaints from individuals who did not realize that their attorney/lawyer did not even have an office in Pennsylvania and were not necessarily experienced practicing before the social security Judges hearing cases in western Pennsylvania. Before you sign a fee agreement or an Appointment of Representative form with any lawyer or non-lawyer advocate, it is crucial that you understand exactly who will be representing you at your hearing and whether the lawyer or advocate maintains an office in Pennsylvania so you do not have any surprises on the day of your hearing.

Kunkel & Fink, LLP has been representing Social Security Disability and Supplemental Security Income Claimants for over 20 years. You will be represented by either Attorney Fink or Attorney Kunkel, both of whom have had years of experience practicing before the Judges that hear social security disability cases in western Pennsylvania.. As always, feel free to call our office at 800-467-5272 or e-mail us at info@kunkelfink.com if you have any questions regarding your application for social security disability benefits.

My parnter Leah Fink and I were recently interviewed for a newspaper article that recently appeared in the Pittsburgh Post Gazette regarding the rise in social security disability claims. You can read the article here. Although the article deals mainly with how law firms are handling the increase in disability cases, Leah also raised the issue about non-attorney representatives and out-of-state attorneys handling disability cases in Pennsylvania. As Leah points out in the article, we recommend that individuals who are seeking representation in a social security disability case carefully research the attorney's or the non-attorney representative's background to determine how many disability cases that they have handled and whether they have experience practicing before Administrative Law Judges sitting in Pennsylvania.

Continue reading "Kunkel & Fink, LLP In The News" »

One of the biggest challenges facing injured and disabled workers is the long wait for a hearing on their social security applications. It's no secret that most applications for social security disability benefits are denied at the initial level which means that most applicants must file an appeal and request a hearing before an Administrative Law Judge ("ALJ"). The Social Security Administration periodically releases data on the length of time that it takes for a hearing to be held from the date of the appeal of the initial denial for the various hearing offices throughout the country. Unfortunately, for injured and disabled workers living in Western Pennsylvania, the average wait is usually over one year. Here are the latest statistics for the hearing offices that have jurisdiction over much of Western, Pennsylvania: Morgantown, West Virginia - 398 days; Pittsburgh - 482 days, Seven Fields, PA - 363 days; and Johnstown, PA - 501 days.

Continue reading "The Long Winding Road - Waiting For Your Social Security Hearing" »

We are often asked whether an individual is eligible for social security disability benefits ("SSDI") even though the invidual is still working. The answer typically depends on how much the individual is earning every month. In order to qualify for SSDI, you must establish that you are unable to perform "substantial gainful activity" ("SGA"), which is basically defined as gainful work activity performed for pay or profit, whether or not any profit is realized. The Social Security Administration ("SSA") considers an individual who is earning more than a certain monthly amount to be engaged in SGA and ineligible for SSDI. The SSA annually sets the SGA amounts for blind and non-blind individuals based on the national average wage index. The monthly SGA amount for 2010 is $1,000 for non-blind individuals and $1,640 for statutorily blind individuals. The SGA amounts change every year and the amounts for past years can be found here.

Social Security Disability Insurance ("SSD") and Supplemental Security Income ("SSI") are federal insurance programs that provide benefits to disabled persons who are unable to work for at least twelve months or more due to a severe physical or mental impairment. The SSD program is available to disabled wage earners based on their payroll taxes that are deducted from their paychecks. SSI, on the other hand, provides benefits to low income individuals who are unable to work due to a physical or mental impairment. Kunkel & Fink, LLP has extensive experience representing individuals applying for both SSD and SSI benefits throughout southwestern Pennsylvania. In fact, many our clients are injured workers who are unable to work due to their work injuries.

The social security disability claims process is complicated and time consuming. The Social Security Administration follows a complex set of regulations that govern the claims procedure and disability determinations. Most claims submitted to the Social Security Administration are initially denied and, therefore, it is necessary to present your case before at a hearing before and an Administrative Law Judge ("ALJ"). Our lawyers have successfully represented hundreds of individuals residing in Allegheny, Cambria, Fayette, Greene, Indiana, Lawrence, Washington, and Westmoreland, counties in their claims for social security disability benefits.

To learn more about the Kunkel & Fink, LLP social security practice, please visit our website. If you or a loved one has a question about social security disability benefits, please call our office for a free evaluation of your claim.

Hello and welcome to the new Pennsylvania Workers' Compensation Attorney Blog. My name is Gregory Kunkel and I am a partner with the law firm of Kunkel & Fink, LLP. With offices located in Uniontown and Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, our firm provides legal representation to individuals throughout southwestern Pennsylvania in workers' compensation, social security disability, personal injury, and employment rights matters.

We created this Blog because we believe that knowledge is indeed power and our goal is to level the playing field for injured workers in Pennsylvania who have questions about their rights to workers' compensation benefits. Despite the name of our blog, we plan to discuss a variety of topics that will be of interest to workers in Pennsylvania, including injured workers' rights to social security disability benefits and employment rights laws prohibiting discrimination in the workplace, mandating overtime pay, and family medical leave for eligible employees. So, welcome aboard, and stayed tuned for more information.