ALJ DISABILITY HEARINGS

Under certain circumstances, our advocates can request that a case be referred back to DDS for a Prehearing Review or that the Office of Hearing Operations (OHO) make an On-the Record (OTR) decision prior to an ALJ Hearing. As well, when OHO feels they can make a fully favorable decision without holding a hearing, they can independently refer a case back to DDS and/or make an (OTR) decision. 

After a claimant files a request for a hearing but before an administrative law judge (ALJ) holds a hearing, an ALJ may, under the circumstances outlined in subsection B below, forward a claim for a prehearing case review to the Disability Determination Services or other components that issued the determination the claimant is appealing. On receipt of the claim(s), the receiving component will decide whether to revise the determination based on a preponderance of the evidence. See 20 CFR 404.941 and 416.1441. Under these procedures, the Social Security Administration may only issue a revised determination if it is fully or partially favorable to the claimant. 

You can request a prehearing review when filing a hearing request via iAppeals. Make a notation in the Remarks Section of the iDisability Report-Appeal about the reason(s) for which you are requesting a pre-hearing review. Be sure to upload all supporting documents! You can also request a prehearing review after a Request for Hearing is filed and any time before the hearing is scheduled.

When requesting a prehearing case review, keep in mind the four circumstances under which the ALJ may refer a case back to DDS:

• additional evidence is submitted
• there is an indication that additional evidence is available
• there is a change in the law or regulation
• there is an error in the file or some other indication that the prior determination may be revised