Landau Injury Law

With those words, I was told by the Supreme Court of Virginia that they would not award benefits for my client, who was dying of berylliosis. He had worked on rocket propellent experiments in Alexandria for much of his 38 year career with Atlantic Research, and of the 20 other men who did this kind of work, he was the only one still alive.

This disabled man came to ABRAMS LANDAU, Ltd. when he lost feeling in his extremities and became short of breath, and we filed the workers compensation claim less than 6 months after the diagnosis from the National Jewish Medical Center in Denver, Colorado was received. However, as it had been more than 7 years since his last exposure to the dangerous material, the Virginia Workers Compensation judge dismissed the claim. This Deputy Commissioner sadly told us (more…)

Social Security claimants who retain me are surprised to find out that even though the live in “Northern Virginia,” their Hearing may be held in Richmond Richmond or the District of Columbia. While I have tried such cases successfully in Washington, Richmond and Charlottesville, there is no facility for an Administrative Law Judge (”ALJ”) Hearing “inside the Beltway” in Virginia. That means, for most of our clients, they will be required to travel.
A visit to the Hearing site BEFORE their “day in Court” is a terrific idea. No one wants to be panic-stricken, lost, looking for a place to park and not knowing where to go on the “big day.” This scenario is only made worse by the fact that our clients are disabled, and getting around is already fraught with challenges. Our Herndon Reston area injury and disability law firm advises clients and their families to visit the hearing site after they get the ALJ Hearing notice. Even if you are not a client of ABRAMS LANDAU, Ltd., please visit the Hearing site BEFORE your “day in Court.” By taking this “scouting trip,” you will eliminate a lot of unnecessary stress and be better able to focus on what you need to tell the ALJ; why you are disabled for substantial gainful employment.

In a word, “NO.”  According to Herndon Reston area injury and disability lawyer Doug Landau, just because you are getting state workers compensation benefits does not mean you are automatically entitled to federal Social Security Disability benefits.  One government program has no influence over the other when it comes to determinations of eligibility.  At Abrams Landau, Ltd., in Herndon, Virginia, clients are instructed that STATE workers comp cases are generally decided in favor of workers who cannot do the job they did when they got injured.

Federal Social Security disability income claims not only require that the wage earner be unable to perform the kinds of jobs they did in their work life, but that they are also disabled from all jobs that are generally found in the national economy given their present physical and mental impairments.  It is because of the difference between the two government systems that it is important to have counsel who is experienced in BOTH Social Security Disability AND Workers Compensation in cases involving permanent injury, long term work impairment, brain injury and/or severe psychiatric illness.  An experienced workers comp and Social Security disability lawyer will know how best to use the medical evidence to help in BOTH cases, saving valuable time and expense.

At an August 6th Social Security Disability Hearing in Washington, D.C., our client was told that she would prevail then and there.  The written decision was written September 4th.  Our client had several severe disabling conditions.  However, she did “not have an impairment or combination of impairments that meets or medically equals one of the listed impairments” required under Federal law.  She was also considered under the Social Security regulations to be “a younger individual age 18-49″ and educated (high school).  However, Herndon Reston disability and injury lawyer Doug Landau was able to show that she “is unable to perform any past relevant work.”  Landau was also able to demonstrate, and the Federal judge found that, “considering the claimant’s age, education, work experience, and residual functional capacity, there are no jobs that exist in significant numbers in the national economy that the claimant can perform.”  Based upon the evidence presented by ABRAMS LANDAU, Ltd. the claimant was awarded full benefits going back to May of 2005.  Very few cases result in a decision being rendered from the bench, in Court, but on those rare occasions when this does happen, it is a wonderful validation for all of our hard work.  Plus, those clients know that they will be getting a “FULLY FAVORABLE’ decision in the mail and disability benefits thereafter. 

In other posts, we have shown pictures of the inside and outside of Hearing offices used by the Virginia Workers Compensation Commission and Trial Courts.  However, the Federal Government does not usually allow us to take cameras into the court rooms.  In this post we hope to take some of the mystery out of disability Hearings in the District of Columbia.   While we encourage our disabled clients to see OTHER hearings in advance of their own “day in court,” it is very hard to see a Social Security case because the Hearings are held in a building that is not easily found tucked away behind Union Station in the Nation’s capitol.  Here I am in front of the CNN Building, 820 First Street, NE in Washington, D.C., where Social Security Disability Hearings are heard by Administrative Law Judges (”ALJs”) on the 8th floor. Here I am in front of the Cafe on the ground floor of the building where Social Security Disability ALJ Hearings are held.  I often meet with clients here before their case is heard, or after, in order to debrief them, their family members and witnesses.    There is no parking at the building.  The Metro at Union Station is 2 blocks away, but many of our disabled clients have difficulty managing even the Metro.  That is why at the “Pre-Hearing” meeting at our office, we take the time to discuss how to get to the hearing, how to handle the hearing and what to expect afterwards. 

The numbers came out this summer, and the Virginia offices fared well when compared to other states’ offices.  Herndon Reston area Social Security disability lawyer Doug Landau points out that it takes two and a half times longer for a claim in North Atlanta than Richmond or Roanoke Virginia ! 

Several offices of note include (Rank-Hearing office-Processing Time) [from NOSSCR “Social Security Forum,” Vol.30, No.5, May/June, 2008 at pp.32-34]:

1-Harrisburg, PA-295 days,
8-Washington (tie)-330
8-Charleston, WV-330
31-Ft.Lauderdale, FL-388
16-Richmond, VA-352
20-Roanoke, VA-368
51-Norfolk, VA-442
75-Alexandria, VA-490
78-Baltimore, MD-494
106-Columbia, SC-565
126-Miami, FL-652
131-Tampa, FL-682
146-Atlanta (North), GA-838

I have been working with Tampa attorney Tom Young on cases of mutual interest. He has also helped to found InjuryBoard, which is a network of lawyers committed to combating tort reform and those who would take away the rights of individuals to get a fair trial in this country.

InjuryBoard is a growing community of attorneys, media professionals, safety industry experts, and local activists, committed to making a difference by helping families stay safe and avoid injury, and helping those who are injured get the assistance they need to move on with their lives after an accident.

InjuryBoard has “Help Centers” that are an online collection of the best information, professional opinion, and practical advice to help you and your family stay safe and avoid accidents. If you or a loved one are injured, the Help Centers will help (more…)

In yesterday’s post, we looked at the case of the disabled truck driver and the sworn testimony of the Federal Government’s hired professional witness.  Today, we look at the types of questions I use to cross examine these experts in order to successfully prove my client’s disability case.
At ABRAMS LANDAU, Ltd., we put on evidence that:
1. Our client is unable to perform his previous type of work,
2. Significant limitations impinge on any range of work and eliminate large numbers of occupations a person could otherwise perform,
3. Our client’s present impairments are disabling and have lasted in excess of 12 months,
4. The claimant’s impairments prevent him from engaging in substantial gainful employment, both the types of work he did before and other types of work,
5. This claimant must take unscheduled breaks and will miss  more than 4 days per month according to his own, treating health care providers,
6. The uncontroverted lay (non-expert) testimony shows that others do the: shopping, cleaning, cooking, etc.
7. Claimant does almost nothing around the home,
8. Multiple factors in preclude substantial gainful activity,
9. The judge must consider ALL of the claimant’s impairments in combination, including those that are not severe on their own, when determining whether the P has a severe impairment.  (Pursuant to SSR 85-28, an impairment is “not severe” only where the medical evidence clearly establishes that it has a minimal or non-serious effect on a P’s ability to perform work-related activities),
10. The medical evidence supports a finding of disability, as summarized by the claimant’s treating doctors

In a disability case tried in the District of Columbia, Doug Landau confronted the Federal Government’s Vocational Expert (”VE”), much to the displeasure of the Judge. While Landau did not dispute the expert witness’s credentials or experience, the Herndon Reston area disability and injury lawyer cross-examined the VE armed with the treating doctors’ findings and objective evidence.

This ABRAMS LANDAU client’s spine was injured in a truck accident. This middle-aged gentleman from Loudoun County had a catastrophic back injury when the truck he was driving broke. Unfortunately, he had another lawyer represent him in his workers comp claim, and that attorney would not spend the time, money or effort necessary to work up a potential product liability case. By the time he came to ABRAMS LANDAU, Ltd., on referral from the National Organization of Social Security Representatives, the time limit (”statute of limitations”) had run on his negligence case and he had settled his workers comp claim. (more…)

Doug Landau hates waste. Anyone who has seen him around the office knows that he enjoys “multi-tasking.” It makes the Herndon Reston brain injury lawyer nuts when clients waste their time, effort or money. However, there is one type of waste that it particularly grating.

As the former Chair of the Association of Trial Lawyers of America Disability, Social Security and Health Law Section, Landau compared notes with lawyers from all over the country. The ABRAMS LANDAU trial lawyer saw that the interplay of Social Security and Workers Comp laws resulted in permanently disabled and unemployed clients not getting back the money they had paid into the Federal system. In other words, when an injured client is eligible for BOTH State Workers Comp wage loss benefits AND the Federal Social Security Disability Income (”SSDI”) benefits, the Federal Government, like many private Long Term Disability Insurance plans, takes a “set off” for the comp money. For example, if a client (more…)