Do I need a lawyer to help me with a disability reconsideration of appeal or can I do this myself?

When you apply for Social Security and your clam is denied, there are several levels of appeal that you can go through. Reconsideration is the first level of the appeals process. You can request this reconsideration in writing by contacting the Social Security Administration.

The reconsideration process simply involves a review of your application by a disability claims examiner who was not involved in the initial decision.

Most reconsiderations are denied, so your chances of winning aren't good unless you have evidence that your medical condition has deteriorated -- or new evidence that you didn't have the first time around.

You don't need a lawyer to file a reconsideration appeal, although an attorney can help you to determine why your original application was denied and can help you strengthen your application so that it can be approved in reconsideration. The advantage to hiring an lawyer at the reconsideration stage rather than waiting until the hearing stage is that you could get an approval six months to a year earlier than if you wait for a hearing.

If you do appoint a lawyer as your representative, the SSA will negotiate with that representative. However, a representative is not permitted to receive payment for services without written approval from the SSA.