Big Win at U.S. Court of Appeals for Claimant and John Horn!

South Holland Social Security Disability Lawyer John E. Horn of the law firm of Horn & Kelley, P.C., won in the United States Court of Appeals a new hearing for a client whose claim for Social Security Disability benefits was denied.   He won the claim of a thirty-four year old South Holland disability applicant who suffered from massive brain damage due to a fall down the stairs, cognitive deficits, memory issues, fibromyalgia, anxiety, PTSD, and seizures.  The case was Vanprooyen v. Berryhill, 16-3653, Seventh Cir., July 6, 2017.  The claimant was denied Social Security Disability benefits throughout the entire administrative process and by the United States District Court.  The district court ruled for the Commissioner in 14 C 6755.  Plaintiff appealed.  The Seventh Circuit reversed July 21, 2017.

The Seventh Circuit held that Social Security misunderstood the significance of the client’s employment before her onset date. The fact that she worked before the onset date does not negate the possibility that she became disabled by the onset. Part time work is not good evidence of ability to work full-time, especially when she received accommodations from her employer and fellow workers. Goins v. Colvin, 764 F.3d 677, 679 (7 ^th Cir. 2014); Shauger v. Astrue , 675F.3d 690, 697 (7 ^th Cir. 2012).

The Seventh Circuit held that the Administrative Law Judge failed to explain why the favorable testimony of Vanprooyen’s fiancé did not lead to a favorable assessment of her credibility. It was not logical for Social Security to discredit Vanprooyen while dismissing without explanation a corroborating witness who supported her contentions.

The Seventh Circuit held that the Administrative Law Judge gave no logical reason for discounting the opinions of the treating neurologist, treating primary care physician, and treating psychiatrist. A treating physician’s opinion trumps the conclusions of agency consultants – in particular, those who never examined the claimant – unless the limitations articulated by the treating physician are not supported by the record. See Engstrand v. Colvin , 788F.3d 655, 662 (7th Cir. 2015).

The Seventh Circuit held that the Administrative Law Judge failed to mention the opinion of a state consultative examiner who had given Vanprooyen a mental-status examination and concluded that she was unable to manage her own funds because of her “emotional adjustment and medical difficulties.”  The Administrative Law Judge gave substantial weight to the opinions of consulting physicians who had never examined Vanprooyen, saying only that ‘their opinions are consistent with the overall record.” “An Administrative Law Judge can reject an examining physician’s opinion only for reasons supported by substantial evidence in the record; a contradictory opinion of a non-examining physician does not, by itself, suffice.” Gudgel v. Barnhart , 345F.3d 467, 470 (7 ^th Cir. 2003).

The Seventh Circuit finally held that there were serious deficiencies in the Administrative Law Judge’s analysis, and reversed the decision of the district court and remanded the case to the Social Security Administration for further proceedings consistent with this opinion.

Do not make the same mistake so many others have, call us before you file. We can handle your claim from the very beginning.  We apply for South Holland disability claimants online.  Applications for Social Security Disability benefits have a seventy percent chance of being denied.  Then it is necessary to file an appeal called reconsideration.  We request reconsideration for South Holland disability applicants by filing online.  Eighty-five percent of claims are denied at reconsideration.  Then it is necessary to file another appeal requesting a hearing by an administrative law judge.  We request hearings for South Holland disability applicants online.  South Holland disability claims are heard in the Orland Park hearing office.  Many claims are won at the hearing level, but if you do not win, an appeal must be filed with the Appeals Council.  Like everyone else, South Holland disability applicants file their appeals in Falls Church, Virginia, by fax or mail.  The Appeals Council denies eight out of ten appeals.  Social Security used to allow sixty-five percent of all claims, but now it is allowing only forty percent.  We aim to win every claim without a hearing, but Social Security is just a big insurance company, and like any other insurance company, it only wants to take in premiums and not pay benefits.  That means you need a Social Security Disability Lawyer who will if necessary take your case to the United States District Court, the United States Court of Appeals, or even the United States Supreme Court.  South Holland disability applicants file suit against Social Security in the United States District Court in Chicago.  If South Holland disability applicants do not win in the District Court, they appeal to the United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit in Chicago.

Lawyers for
South Holland Disability Applicants, John E. Horn & H. Elizabeth Kelley

When you apply for Social Security Disability, make sure you hire a local fighter, a lawyer who can take your case to the United States District Court or United States Court of Appeals if necessary.  You have at least a fifty percent better chance of winning with a fighting lawyer who can take your case to the United States District Court, the United States Court of Appeals or even the United States Supreme Court.  Visit our website at www.johnehornattorney.com.  We are national leaders in Social Security Disability law with more cases published in the Forum of the National Organization of Social Security Claimants’ Representatives than anyone else in the country for the last several years.  We show other lawyers how to win.  Horn & Kelley won fourteen of sixteen decisions in the U. S. District Court and two out of two decisions in the U. S. Court of Appeals in 2016. We have represented many South Holland disability applicants successfully.

Horn & Kelley are attorneys who represent people on disability claims at every level in Chicagoland, Northwest Indiana, and nationwide.  Horn & Kelley has offices in Chicago , Tinley Park , and La Grange , Illinois, as well as Highland , Indiana.  Their Chicago office serves Southwest Chicago.  Their Tinley Park office serves Chicago’s south and southwest suburbs, including South Holland.  Their LaGrange office serves Chicago’s west suburbs.  Their Highland office serves Northwest Indiana.  They have represented more than 5,000 clients in the past twenty-five years. They can represent you in any state or territory.  If you are a South Holland disability applicant, get a free evaluation of your Social Security Disability claim and call Horn & Kelley at 888-921-5297.  A South Holland disability applicant would ordinarily make an appointment at our Tinley Park office, depending on what is convenient for you.  Horn & Kelley practice only in the field of Social Security Disability.  Follow Horn & Kelley on Twitter @hornkelleylaw and like us on Facebook.

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