Time Limits for Social Security Disability Appeals
After a decision on your Social Security disability case is made, a Lowell disability attorney wants you to understand the time frames for which an appeal can be made.
Levels of Adjudication
You should know that there are four levels of administrative judgment of Social Security claims. The initial determination, reconsideration determination, hearing before an administrative law judge (ALJ) and review by the Appeals Council. Your Lowell disability lawyer knows that after this, a case may by filed in federal court.
Time Limits for Appeals
A Lowell disability attorney would inform you that, with one exception, the time limit to appeal all Social Security disability decisions is 60 days. Taken into consideration is that decisions are actually received five days from the date on the face of the decision. Your Lowell disability lawyer knows that unless there is evidence to the contrary, the effective time limit is 65 days from the date of the decision.
Exception to 65 day Time Limit
As noted by a Lowell disability attorney, the one exception to the 65-day effective time limit applies to appealing an ALJ denial to the Appeals Council after there has been a federal court remand. These appeals have a time limit of 30 days.
Weekend and Holiday Considerations to Time Limits
Another exception to time frame adjustments occurs when the period for requesting the next appellate step ends on a Saturday, Sunday, legal holiday, or any other day which all or part is a non-workday for federal employees by statute or Executive Order. In this case, the period is extended to include the next full workday. 20 C.F.R. §§ 404.3(b), 416.120(d).
Determining Date of Mailing
Your Lowell disability attorney would make you aware of the fact that the Social Security Administration (SSA) treats an appeal as filed on the day it receives it. The SSA will use the date a “request or notice is mailed to us by the US mail, if using the date we receive it would result in the loss or lessening of rights. The date shown by a U.S. postmark will be used as the date of mailing. If the postmark is unreadable, or there is no postmark, we will consider other evidence of when you mailed it to us.”20 C.F.R.§ 404.614(b)(2).
Good legal council is important in the appeal process of your Social Security disability case. For a consultation with a Lowell disability attorney, call the office of Gerard A. Palma at 888-295-4955 today.