One of the worst days a Social Security disability claimant can face is when they open their mailbox and an unfavorable decision from the Administrative Law Judge arrives a short while after their disability hearing.
An unfavorable decision means the ALJ found the applicant not disabled. After waiting two years to get to this phase, this news can be a major blow, but there is some recourse for people who receive an unfavorable decision from an ALJ and believe the judge erred in his or her decision making.
That recourse is the Appeals Council, which reviews both favorable and unfavorable ALJ decisions. Few people know much about the Appeals Council’s inner workings, so it may be helpful to provide some facts about the Appeals Council.
- The Appeals Council is headquartered in Falls Church, Virginia with additional offices in Baltimore, Maryland and CrystalCity, Virginia.
- There were 157,311 requests to review ALJ decisions through September of 2013.
- A year ago, the Appeals Council processed 176,251 reviews and the average processing time for a review was just shy of a year at 364 days.
- In reviewing a decision, the Appeals Council can consider any of the issues that the ALJ considered, whether that information is favorable or unfavorable to your case.
The End Result
When the Appeals Council makes a decision, there are a number of different possible outcomes. The Appeals Council may decide to deny the review, which means the ALJ decision stands. The Appeals Council could also decide the ALJ decision was wrong and approve the claim outright, although this happens infrequently. If the Appeals Council believes the ALJ erred, the more likely scenario is that the Appeals Council would remand the case back for another ALJ hearing.
To learn more about the Appeals Council’s functioning click here.
