How much do social security lawyers charge

As a Metairie area disability attorney, one of the first questions I am usually asked is "How much will this cost me?"

Many people know that a Social Security representative will improve their chances of getting disability benefits.

But, they are understandably worried that they can't afford an attorney or advocate to help them fight for their benefits.

There are many falsehoods and misconceptions out there about how much a disability advocate charges.

What is the Most an Attorney can Charge for Disability?

Here's the great news, an SSDI lawyer will not cost anything upfront.

The cost of disability attorney in Louisiana is the same as it is nationwide.

Federal disability law fees are set by law and cannot exceed 25% of your back benefits.

In many cases, the maximum is $6,000 (if we win at the first hearing). That’s because I generally use the fee agreement process.

AND that amount is ONLY due if I am successful in representing you.

If your claim is denied, you owe no attorney fees.

Fees are only due when/if we win your case.

For example, let’s assume that we are successful in getting your disability benefits.

Your onset date is set 17 months prior to today’s date (that means that SSA will owe you back benefits).

Due to SSA laws, you can be paid 12 months of back benefits in this scenario (because SSA does not pay for the first 5 months).

If your benefit amount is $850 per month, your back benefits would equal $10,200 ($850 X 12).

The attorney’s fee on this amount would be $2,550 ($10,200 X 25%). 

If this number were above $6000, then only $6000 would be paid to your attorney.

Will a Disability Attorney Take a Percentage of my Future Benefits?

Here is another important aspect of a disability representative’s fee: you do not owe a fee based on future benefits.

That is, you will not have to keep paying your disability attorney 25% of your monthly disability check.

Once the disability lawyer is paid from the back benefits, that is all you owe with respect to fees.

In some cases, disability attorneys charge costs (which are different from fees) whether your disability claim is successful or not.

What About Costs?

Costs include things such as expenses incurred for medical records, long-distance phone calls, mail, parking at your hearing, and other costs paid to develop your disability case.

As a Social Security disability lawyer in Louisiana who handles cases nationwide, I generally handle the cost issue on a case-by-case basis.

You should ask your disability lawyer (or disability representative) how they charge costs.

One thing to keep in mind if you use a disability representative from a national firm that must travel to your area is whether or not those travel costs will be charged to you.

This could include airfare, rental car, hotel stay, and meals. These costs can get expensive and really decrease the amount you end up with at the end of the day.

While the maximum amount of fees is limited by the law, costs are not limited in the same manner.

Thus, you need to watch costs and be mindful of them when you hire a disability lawyer. The costs for national lawyers and advocates can get excessive.

There is a possibility that a disability attorney may get more than the $6,000 if your case involves extensive work (usually because of multiple appeals to and from SSA and federal court).

However, even in that case, the fee charged to you cannot exceed 25% of your back benefits.

In this case, the fee petition process would have to be used. Your attorney would have to file a fee petition and have it approved by the Social Security Administration.

This is a helpful and informative guide that will guide you through some of the common mistakes and errors that lead to unfavorable Social Security Disability decisions.

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Just click here to receive your free copy of my book 9 Mistakes That Can Disable Your Social Security Disability Claim.

In most cases, a Social Security disability attorney’s fee is limited to 25% of the retroactive, or “past-due” benefits you are awarded.  This fee is “capped” at a maximum of $6,000.00, so the fee is whichever is less: either 25% or $6,000.00.  There is no minimum fee.

You usually don’t have to pay anything upfront to a disability lawyer.  Instead, any fee is paid out of the back benefits you receive.  Usually, Social Security handles the payment of fees directly, withholding the money from your backpay award, and sending the remainder to you.

Are there exceptions?

Yes.  While Social Security always has to approve any fee between a lawyer and a disability client, there are a few situations when the fee may be different.

1. If more than one social security disability lawyer has worked on the case, for example, you have fired a previous lawyer, or the lawyer withdrew from the case and you hired a new lawyer.  If the first lawyer did not waive his or her right to a fee, both disability attorneys will have to file a “fee petition” with Social Security.  This fee petition requires the social security disability attorneys to itemize the work they performed on the case and to request a reasonable fee for that work.   Most attorneys will send this proposed fee petition to you for your review and approval or comments.  If you agree that the fee is reasonable, or if you think the fee is not reasonable, you can contact the attorney or object to the fee with Social Security.
2. If the case requires an appeal beyond the hearing level, and you win your case after a second (or third) hearing.  In these cases, Social Security permits an attorney to seek a higher fee based on the idea that your case required more work than a typical matter.  Like the situation above, the attorney still must seek approval of the fee from Social Security, and explain what he or she did to warrant the higher fee.  Here too you have a say.
3. If you hire an attorney to help you with a cessation of benefits, in other words, you were receiving Social Security disability or SSI benefits and the government decided you are no longer disabled.  In this case, if you request the government continue paying you while you appeal, there will be no back benefits from which to draw a fee.  Some attorneys will request a monthly retainer in these cases equal to 25% of each month’s benefit.  Once the case is over, this money, which will be held in the attorney’s trust account, will be used as the basis for a fee petition.  If Social Security approves the fee, the attorney may then use that money as the attorney fee.  If Social Security approves a lower amount, the attorney will return the balance to you.

Contact Us Today

To schedule a free claim review or to learn more about how we can help you, contact our office today at 856-795-8880.

What about costs?

Many Social Security lawyers will either request a costs retainer to handle out-of-pocket costs, or will advance costs as they come up and request you reimburse those costs at the end of the case regardless of whether you win or lose.

Unlike some areas of law where attorneys can earn enormous fees based on large settlements, as we discussed, in most cases, Social Security attorneys are limited to no more than $6,000.00 in fees in any case, and the vast majority of cases, those fees are much lower.  Because of this, most attorneys simply can’t afford to take on the costs of developing a case without reimbursement.

If you are concerned about costs, make sure you talk to an attorney about their practices and get it in writing.  If at all possible, request a cap on what an attorney will incur in costs without talking to you so you can have some security that you won’t get hit with a large cost bill at the end of your case.  Our firm has a clause like this built into every one of our fee agreements that acts as a promise that we will not spend more than a pre-agreed amount on costs unless we get your express approval.