Hello and welcome to the Swanson Thomas & Coon (STC) social security disability blog. I’d like to take this opportunity to tell you a little about myself and the topics I’ll be blogging about.
I’m a social security disability attorney here at STC – a law firm founded on the premise that legal work and public justice belong together. As a firm, we began with the commitment not to lose sight of our values and beliefs while we practice in all the areas in which STC has expertise. That was nearly 30 years ago.
For the last twenty-five years, our practice has included representing people from all walks of life who are disabled from working fulltime. We represent clients with both supplemental security income (SSI) and social security disability (SSD) claims – from as early as initial application all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court, if necessary.
In the many years that our firm has represented clients with social security disability claims, the landscape has changed. There was a time when a 55 year-old client was likely to be awarded benefits but that’s not true anymore. Now we see clients in their early 60’s who’ve been denied. Immigrants and refugees who became eligible for SSI through the Balanced Budget Act of 1997 may see their benefits end under some budget proposals now under consideration by Congress.
In my posts here, I’ll share important news, comment on changes in the law, share my advice for best practices in representing clients, discuss my client’s experiences in obtaining social security disability and have occasional guest posts by professionals with whom I work closely –social workers, health care providers and others who play an important role in social security disability benefits.
I welcome your comments and questions. Please don’t hesitate to contact me!