You better get a different lawyer. I understand that a lawyer is limited to
how much he  can charge for pursuing a disability case. It sounds like you
got a royal whatever. There are lawyers that specialize in SS disability
cases FIND A GOOD ONE!!
Bob Anibal


-----Original Message-----
From: Stan or Joan Snyder <[log in to unmask]>
To: Multiple recipients of list PARKINSN <[log in to unmask]>
Date: Sunday, August 09, 1998 1:12 PM
Subject: My experience with Social Security Disability


>Dear Bruce & all: I'm going to try to be as objective about this as I
>can. I would rather get in the ring with Mike Tyson & go for 2 rounds
>than relive this experience; the outcome would be the same, but at least
>with Iron Mike, I'd know who the s.o.b. was who sucker punched me! My
>fight with this institution began in April of '93. I was so gullible! I
>had a wonderful talk with a very nice lady who filled in all the forms
>for me & said that yes-I was the type of person the system had been set
>up for; worked long & hard; sometimes 3 jobs at a time. (I was a
>bartender & a darn good one, too!) I had letters from past bosses, from
>my docs (altho not from my nureo-I was still afraid of him!) & she
>assured me that I would be approved without delay. After 14 months of
>heart-breaking denials, I went to retain the services of a lawyer who
>specialized in SS Disability cases. At our first meeting & until I
>signed a waiver promising to give him 25% of my back benefits obtained
>by him for me, he was like a kindly, older gentleman who hated to get
>involved with all of this "dirty business" but he was, he assured me,
>only in it to help people like myself who truly deserved these benefits,
>had paid into the system & suddenly found themselves unable to work
>anymore. I was to call him if I had any questions-any time night or day,
>& he would personally see to it that I was given a green light to
>discuss all aspects of my case. The next year was the most degrading,
>dehumanizing & demoralizing of my life. As soon as SS found out that I
>had retained legal counsel, it was as if I had become the enemy...
>& my lawyer went into this duck & hide mode. When I called his office to
>ask a question about the mile-high stack of documentation, or to see how
>things were going, he was never around & his robot secretaries were no
>help. I did get one very official correspondence from him. It was a
>severe (albeit nicely worded) tongue lashing telling me to leave this to
>him-these things are of a delicate nature and required time. Heck, time
>was on his side: the longer that my case dragged on, the bigger his
>chunk of back benefits would be. Meanwhile, we were living on my
>husbands' income as a City building Inspector; not a bad wage if you
>didn't have to pay mortgage & car payments & send 2 kids to Catholic
>school!
>Finally, on March 1, 1995, I was granted a hearing before a judge. I was
>scared to death (which ultimately played ito my favor-my tremor &
>symptoms were bad enough that it only took the judge a half an hour of
>questioning to come to the conclusion that I wasn't trying to scam
>anybody & that I definitely deserved SSD-
>but that he could  not in good conscience grant it back to 1990 since I
>had worked
>part-time during the time my husband was overseas with Dessert Storm. I
>was floored! That was the first time that I had heard 1990 as the start
>date of my disability!! Before I could think, the judge pounded his
>gavel, scheduled another hearing 4 months later, & dismissed me. That
>lawyer never had a chance-I was so upset & sobbing like my life depended
>on the outcome of this mess! I sobbed after the judge, please, please-if
>I deserve it now, could you please just say my disability began today. I
>wouldn't take anything in back payments...just, please let me get off
>this insane merry-go-round of stress & heartache! You can bet that my
>lawyer had me hustled out into the hallway in mere seconds. He explained
>that
>he had my best interests at heart-getting me a large back settlement
>would truly vindicate me! BULLS---! It meant that his cut would be MORE!
>I said that I was going back in there & tell the judge that I didn't
>want anything-if he would just start my payments NOW. My lawyer slinked
>into chambers & came out in 2 minutes saying that he & the judge had
>agreed on stating that I became disabled 6 months prior, & that I would
>receive back benefits from that date. I still wonder if those two were
>in agreement about my case before ever entered the hearing room but
>no-that would be illegal! It still took about 4 months to start
>receiving benefits-the lawyer has to be paid first & the books closed on
>the case. Since that time, I have sworn off  beating my head against a
>brick wall! In his song "Get Over It", Don Henley says: "Let's kill all
>the lawyers-let's kill them tonight!".
>He was speaking metaphorically & I am not at all into violence, but this
>is something I could probably get excited about! I'm kidding, honestly!
>So there you have my saga, Bruce. I can only say that I do not envy you
>the process you are about to undergo. I can only hope that they made it
>a little more "user-friendly" like they were supposed to do with the
>IRS. I will wish you Godspeed and remember you in my prayers.
>
>--
>Joan Snyder (47/8) "Do or do not. There is no try."-Yoda
>[log in to unmask]
>http://www.newcountry.nu/pd/members/snyder/page1.htm
>