What to Expect at Your Hearing. It is not a trial.
No government lawyer argues against you. It is usually a conference room, closed to the public — and the only point in the process where a decision-maker hears from you directly.
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It is not a trial, and nobody is there to argue against you
People arrive braced for cross-examination by a government lawyer. There is no government lawyer. Nobody is there to attack your case. The hearing is closed to the public, and it happens in a hearing room or over the phone — not a courtroom.
Having done thousands of these, we can tell you that most of them go almost exactly the same way every time.
Where the hearing happens
Hearings may be held in person, by video, or by telephone. If yours is telephonic, you will attend from home or anywhere you have quiet and good reception. The judge calls you at the scheduled time and connects everyone on a conference line.
If the call does not come exactly on time, do not panic. It usually means the judge’s earlier hearings ran long. Your attorney will reach out with an update.
Who is in the room
| Who | What they do |
|---|---|
| The administrative law judge | Runs the hearing and decides your case. Not the person who denied you earlier. |
| Your attorney | Raises objections, questions you, and cross-examines the experts. |
| The hearing recorder | Records everything. This is why a clear spoken record matters. |
| A “jobs” expert (usually) | A vocational expert who testifies about your past work and what jobs someone with your limitations could do. |
| A medical expert (sometimes) | Testifies about the medical evidence, often by phone. |
What happens during the hearing
The judge greets everyone
You and your attorney go into a closed hearing room, or the judge calls you both on the phone.
The judge takes up preliminary issues
The judge goes over the file with your attorney and asks whether there are objections or concerns.
You are sworn in and you testify
Your past work and why you stopped. Your daily activities. Your conditions and your treatment. All of it aimed at one question: why you cannot work, physically or mentally.
The judge questions the jobs expert
You will likely not understand what they are talking about, and you do not need to. Cross-examining that testimony is what your attorney is there for.
Final statements
You or your attorney can add anything that was missed. Written statements can also be submitted after the hearing if something comes to you later.
How to behave
The judge is in charge and decides the case at this level. Be polite. Say “yes” or “no” rather than “ok” or “uh huh” — the hearing is being recorded and a clear record matters. Call the judge “sir,” “ma’am,” or “Your Honor.” Do not interrupt.
Do not speak unless you are asked something. If an urgent question comes up, tell your attorney quietly and let them decide whether to raise it.
While the experts testify, sit quietly
Pay attention, but do not worry about what the jobs expert or the medical expert says. That is our job, and much of what they say may have no effect on your case at all.
You are not allowed to talk during anyone else’s testimony. Judges become very angry if you interrupt — even the most patient judge will tell you to be quiet. You may whisper a question to your attorney if you need to, though they may ask you to wait so they can focus on what is happening.
How to testify
Your testimony is simple: answer the questions you are asked. These are the mistakes we see people make.
Answer the question, then explain
Answer directly, then explain only if you must. Do not wander off the subject. If the judge needs more, the judge will ask. Do not volunteer information nobody asked for — it is rude to the judge and it makes a confusing record.
Avoid “never,” “always,” and “nothing”
Judges take you literally. Say you do “nothing” all day and it will not be believed, because even sleeping is something. Do not exaggerate. Overstating costs you credibility on the parts that were true.
Do not contradict yourself in the room
Do not testify you can only sit fifteen minutes and then sit through an hour-long hearing. Do not say you cannot reach and then reach across the table. If you need to stand or walk, tell your attorney you need a break — that is far better than sitting through it.
You will be sworn in
You must tell the truth. If you do not, you will very likely lose, and lying to a judge under oath is a crime. As your representative we cannot allow false testimony and will tell you to correct it.
You are allowed not to remember
Nothing you are asked should be something you do not know. But if you truly do not know or cannot remember, say so. That is a better answer than a guess.
Four things we need to hear about first
Work after your disability began, illegal drug use, alcohol abuse, and criminal history. If any of that worries you, tell us before the hearing. Generally this information is already in the file, so the judge may have questions about it either way — you want us prepared, not surprised.
What we do before your hearing
Medical development. We go through every provider in your file and request your records so nothing is missing on the day. It is important that you keep getting treatment while you wait — gaps in care get read as improvement.
Once we have compiled the list of providers Social Security has, we will contact you to find out whether you have new doctors or records the agency does not have. Keep a running list. We do not need doctors’ names — just the facilities and locations where you were treated.
Briefs and objections. Once your records are in, we review the evidence and file any briefs, objections, or arguments with the judge.
The prep call. Usually one to two weeks before the hearing, we call to discuss the case and anything that came out of our review. Sometimes we call earlier, a few weeks to a month out, if something needs handling in advance — amending your onset date, for instance.
Why we will not rehearse your answers
People often expect to sit down and go through every question the judge might ask. We do not do that, and it is deliberate.
Rehearsed testimony comes across as not genuine, and a judge may suspect you have been fed answers that are not true. It also tends to make people testify worse, not better. It is not usually productive to go through your records line by line with you either — knowing your file is our job. Yours is to show up and answer honestly.
What to wear
This surprises people, so read it twice: do not dress up. A hearing is not a job interview and it is not a formal court appearance. You should not wear a suit or a formal dress.
Wear clean, plain, respectful clothing. Nothing dirty. Nothing political. Nothing that shows excess skin. That is the whole rule. If your hearing is by telephone, nobody sees you at all — this applies to video and in-person hearings.
Witnesses: put it in writing instead
Family members and friends often want to come and testify on your behalf. We ask for written statements instead, with very few exceptions, and there are good reasons for it.
A written statement cannot be cross-examined. It can be checked for accuracy before it is submitted. And judges generally prefer that only you and the experts testify — hearing time is limited, and many judges will not allow additional witnesses at all.
So if someone close to you has watched what your condition has done to your daily life, that observation is valuable. Have them write it down and give it to us.
After the hearing
The judge usually does not announce a decision at the hearing. The decision must be in writing, and generally it takes three to five months after the hearing to arrive. A copy is sent to you and to us at the same time.
If you thought of something during the hearing that you did not say, you can still submit it in writing afterward.
If you are 50 or older
The Medical-Vocational Guidelines — the grid rules — can direct a finding of disabled based on your age, education, past work, and what you can still do. That argument has to be made on the record. It is not applied automatically. Read how the grid rules work →
Have a hearing scheduled?
The months before a hearing are when the case is actually won or lost. If yours is on the calendar, the time to talk is now.
Hearing scheduled? Let us prepare it with you.
Free case review. No obligation. claimants — call or message Attorney Joseph Duerst today.
602.607.0000Or email contact@jdisability.com