When putting on a disability retirement case under FERS or CSRS before the Merit Systems Protection Board, it is essential that an applicant (if unrepresented) and the attorney (if represented, the applicant need not participate in any Prehearing Conference, but will obviously encounter the Judge during the Telephone Hearing) listens to the Administrative Judge during any Pre-Hearing Conference.
Most Administrative Judges are actually willing to help the appellant. While judges are unable to render legal advice or to actually lend counsel to the appellant, many administrative judges go out of their way to clearly outline for the Appellant the tools needed to persuade and win the case. Administrative Judges, for the most part, actually want to root for the appellant, and want you to put on a good case to persuade them to rule in your favor. In my opinion, an appellant should have an attorney at the Merit Systems Protection Board. At a Prehearing Conference, I listen carefully at any special concerns or comments which an Administrative Judge may make — because such concerns are often the key to winning the case for my client. Remember — judges are human; they want to root for the underdog; they want you to win your case.
Sincerely,
Robert R. McGill, Esquire
Filed under: OPM Disability Actors - The Attorney, OPM Disability Actors - The MSPB Administrative Judge, The Job of a Federal Disability Attorney, U.S. Merit Systems Protection Board (MSPB) | Tagged: attorney representing federal employees, federal disability retirement, federal employees disability benefits, FERS disability retirement, how to win an OPM disability case, job of a postal disability lawyer, Merit Systems Protection Board and OPM disability, MSPB Administrative Judge, MSPB Administrative Judge (AJ), MSPB and OPM disability retirement, MSPB disability attorney, MSPB disability lawyer, mspb judge can't give legal advice during a disability case, opm disability representation for new mexico federal workers, OPM disability retirement, paying attention to what the judge says key to win opm disability, physicians ready to testify for a mspb telephone hearing, Postal Service disability, Prehearing Conference at the MSPB, texas opm disability retirement, the Administrative Judge at the MSPB, The MSPB Prehearing Conference, tips for us government employees on disability retirement, US Postal Disability, when the administrative judge wants to help an applicant, when you really need a federal disability retirement lawyer!, winning an opm disability case at the mspb stage | Leave a comment »