FERS Disability Retirement Law: Mistaken Identity

Mistaken Identity can take many forms.  In its simplest version, it is to merely mistake one person for being another.  But there are other, more complex forms.  For example, of going to an extravagant dinner party, enjoying the lavish food, being impressed with the splendor of the decor, the fine mansion, the seemingly expensive furniture, and the elegance of well-dressed people — and mistakenly identifying the wealth of accouterments for the foundation of a fine evening.

You had “fun”.  It was a great evening.  Elegance was the appearance; conversations — well, they had their moments.  The “mistake” is, indeed, in making the identification with the surroundings, and not with the relationships.  That is the difference between modernity and times past; we tend to think that the surroundings — the furniture, the paintings, all of the “possessions” — make up for and constitute the conclusory declaration of a “fine evening”.

But that is where the mistaken identity takes place; for, could not the same result have been achieved in less extravagant settings?  Was it because we were so impressed by the wealth abounding, that we forgot the importance of relationships?

And so we have gone about destroying human interaction, thinking that the accouterments were the basis for a fine evening, disregarding the relational interactions which should always take precedence over the superficial trappings which deceive.  But that is the consequence of materialism — of thinking that, at the end of the day, the winner, the king of the mountain, the one who prevails, is the one who has amassed the greatest volume of possessions.

It is the greatest of mistaken identities — that acquiring “stuff” is what makes us happy.

For Federal employees and U.S. Postal workers who suffer from a medical condition and need to consider preparing, formulating and filing an effective Federal Disability Retirement application through the U.S. Office of Personnel Management under FERS, the “mistaken identity” is often in failing to see that one’s health takes precedence over all else.

It is something we have always taken for granted; yet, without it, all else becomes secondary and irrelevant by comparison.

Contact a FERS Disability Attorney who specializes in Federal Disability Retirement Law, and begin to correct the misconception which has resulted in a mistaken identity — that health comes before all else, and getting a Federal Disability Retirement annuity will help you to prioritize your health.

Sincerely,

Robert R. McGill
Lawyer exclusively representing Federal and Postal employees to secure their Federal Disability Retirement benefits under FERS from the U.S. Office of Personnel Management.

 

The U.S. Office of Personnel Management: The Objective Perspective

There are those, of course, who contend that there is no such thing; that we are all colored by our biases and prejudices; that “objectivity” is a false premise, to begin with, and merely a pretext to spew one’s hidden agenda.

But the mind is greater than a mere cauldron of personal beliefs.  It can, through logical analysis, strip away personal content, private biases and reach a level of logical judgements through an extrapolated methodology of abstracted conceptualizations unfettered by privately-held prejudices.  It is comprised by a disciplined approach, and is a perspective which is obtained through self-checking and considered judgments.

The U.S. Office of Personnel Management, of course, claims to review all FERS Disability Retirement applications with an “objective perspective”.  They will claim that they are not out to deny a claim, but merely reviews all Federal Disability Retirement applications with an “objective perspective”.

Have you ever read a denial of a FERS Disability Retirement application issued by the U.S. Office of Personnel Management?  They make it sound as if you had absolutely no chance of success.  Does that approach appear to be “objective”?  “Unbiased”?

Consult with an OPM Disability attorney who specializes in Federal Disability Retirement Law, and hire a Federal Lawyer who goes beyond the objective perspective, and instead becomes an advocate who will argue in your favor.

Sincerely,

Robert R. McGill, Esquire

 

Federal Disability Retirement: When Hiring a Lawyer

When hiring a lawyer or a law firm, what are your expectations and who are you hiring?  Are you hiring an “Intake Officer” (whatever they are); a paralegal; a legal assistant; a “Disability Specialist” (whatever THEY are) — or are you hiring a lawyer?  That is, a person who holds the law degree, who is entitled to practice law, and who is the knowledgeable “expert” in the field of Federal Disability Retirement Law?

How can you tell?  Do you know you are hiring a lawyer merely because someone tells you so?  Or, are these the indicators: When you make a call, the lawyer answers your call.  When you leave a message, the lawyer calls you back.  When you send an email, the lawyer responds.

Or: You always only speak to an “assistant”, and never to the lawyer; the “Disability Specialist” (again, what is a “Disability Specialist” — and what does it mean to be a “specialist”, especially if you aren’t a lawyer?) is always the one who seems to be handling your case; and what happens if your case get denied at the Initial Stage of the Federal Disability Retirement process, and then again at the Reconsideration Stage of the process — who will see you through at the U.S. Merit Systems Protection Board?

When hiring a lawyer or a law firm, make sure that you are actually getting what you are paying for: An actual FERS Disability Retirement Lawyer who will guide you with his experience, wisdom and legal acumen.

Sincerely,

Robert R. McGill, Esquire

 

Postal and Federal Medical Retirement: The Difference

Perhaps it is large and expansive; or, of such a thin, frail line that one can barely notice it; in either case, it is that difference — large or small, wide or thin, statistically insignificant or clearly discernible — that makes the difference.

How important is it to you?  What are you willing to invest in the difference in order to make the difference a difference of relevance?  What level and extent of a difference will make it significant enough that the difference will be the difference between success or failure?

For Federal employees and U.S. Postal workers who suffer from a medical condition which prompts the necessity for filing an effective FERS Medical Retirement application with the U.S. Office of Personnel Management, it is important to have that “advantage” and “edge” in increasing the chances of a successful application.  The difference will likely be the lawyer you choose.

Contact a Federal Disability Retirement Lawyer who has made a difference in the lives of countless thousands of Federal employees and Postal workers, and enhance your chances of a successful outcome by preparing, formulating and filing an effective Federal Disability Retirement application under FERS.

Sincerely,

Robert R. McGill, Esquire

 

Federal & Postal Disability Retirement: The Unintended Error

Perhaps it is an unnecessary assumption; for, are any errors intended?  And, if intended, does it not undermine the very concept of being an “error”?  Do we ever deliberately make an error?  Or, is it more likely the case that — if we in fact did intend to make the error — we would merely retrospectively lie about it?

Perhaps in circumstances where much is at stake, or a person is threatened — as in gambling, where “throwing” a game will result in greater profit, or making an accounting “error” will limit financial devastation, etc.  Otherwise, in most instances, an error is presumed to be unintended.  And it is precisely because it is unintended that an error becomes exaggerated in its unintended consequences.  “We didn’t know”; “If only I had known”; “How could I have known?”; “I didn’t mean to…”, etc.

For Federal employees and U.S. Postal workers who suffer from a medical condition such that the medical condition prevents the Federal or Postal employee from performing one or more of the essential elements of one’s Federal or Postal job, preparing a Federal Disability Retirement application to be submitted to the U.S. Office of Personnel Management in as error-free state of formulation is obviously the preferred state of submission.

Errors can — and will — come back to haunt you, whether unintended or not.  Consult with a Federal Disability Retirement Lawyer and limit the extent and consequences of errors unintended.

Sincerely,

Robert R. McGill, Esquire
OPM Disability Retirement Attorney

 

Medical Retirement for Federal Employees: The Audience

We shall see.  Sports without an audience.  There have been enough psychological studies done to establish that people — including groups of people (i.e., teams) — act and react differently in comparative analysis between behaving before crowds as opposed to without them.  The greatest performers have been those who “know” their audience.  In other words, the “crowd pleasers”, the ones who can manipulate the emotional responses of the audience, etc.

Do some play for the 6 o’clock highlights?  Does a spectacular play become so when no one is watching?  Yes, yes, there is the television audience; but the fans once removed is like the tree that falls in the forest without anyone witnessing it; the tree does indeed fall, but the silence that surrounds is what dominates.  We shall see.

For Federal employees and U.S. Postal workers who suffer from a medical condition such that the medical condition prevents the Federal or Postal employee from performing one or more of the essential elements of one’s Federal or Postal job, remember who our audience is: It is not your Agency; it is not your Supervisor or your coworkers; it is a separate agency altogether — the U.S. Office of Personnel Management.

It is a paper presentation to OPM, and how it is characterized, what is presented, the extent and quality of the presentation — these all matter.  For, in the end, the “To Whom” is always crucial in every arena of play — whether in sports, in law, or even in the privacy of one’s home; it is the audience that makes the difference.

Sincerely,

Robert R. McGill, Esquire

 

Federal Disability Retirement: Righting the Mistakes

Some have posited that we actually need 2 lifetimes: One for living, and another for righting the mistakes made in the first lifetime.  Then, a “Mark-Twain humorist” once quipped that, No, human beings need at least 3 lives — the first to live; the second to right the mistakes of the first; and another to do all of the things we always wanted to do but didn’t get a chance to because we were too busy worrying about it.

Life, indeed, is a series of regrets, and most of us still have consciences such that we worry and ruminate about the mistakes we made; how we go about “righting” those mistakes; and finally, on our deathbeds, to simply cry out for forgiveness because the weight of our past is too much to bear.  We can spend most, if not almost all, of our lives trying to correct the errors of our error-filled past; and, if not that, to worry about it.  Often, we don’t even know that we are making the mistakes until it is too late, or until that moment of revelation when we say to ourselves — How did I get myself into this mess?

For Federal employees and U.S. Postal workers who suffer from a medical condition such that the medical condition prevents the Federal or Postal employee from performing one or more of the essential elements of one’s Federal or Postal job, it is important to try and file an effective and — as much as possible — an error-free Federal Disability Retirement application.  There is much to be worried about in filing a Federal Disability Retirement application: the complexity of the process itself; the legal hurdles which must be overcome; the bureaucratic morass that must be fought.

Consult with an attorney who specializes in Federal Disability Retirement Law and try and avoid the mistakes at the outset. In Federal Disability Retirement, you surely do not want to spend your “second life” righting the mistakes of your first life.

Sincerely,

Robert R. McGill, Esquire

 

OPM Disability Retirement under FERS: Poet’s Choice

What is it about poets that so many die young?  There are various studies “out there” (just Google it!) which reveal that the suicide rate amongst poets is significantly higher than in other professions.  The emotional tragedian — of the person who views the world through a lens of subjective creativity yearning for romanticism in a reality of harsh ugliness — is a person who cannot fathom the contrasting loss of beauty.

Is there, within the profession of a poet, those who engage the traditional iambic pentameter as opposed to some formless, free-flowing approach (i.e., E.E. Cummings?) where the statistical significance varies?  Or is it indiscriminately indifferent across the board?  Is it because constant rumination within a subjective universe of human thought leads to greater mental instability, or is it something more fundamental and elementary— like the frustration of trying to find the “perfect word” to rhyme?

Do poets search for rhyming words like the rest of us do?  You know — where, for example, take the word “fought” and then in our minds we go down the list of the alphabet — bought, caught, (skip D, overlook E because it is a vowel; “fought” we ignore because we just used it; got, hot, skip I, etc.) — or does the word naturally flow for the poet?  In the end, is it rumination which leads to a state of being distraught, or the realization that the art of poetry cannot be reconciled with the chaos of this universe?

For Federal employees and U.S. Postal workers who have realized that a medical condition will not go away, and where the poet’s choice of words to describe the frustration in dealing with one’s job, career and inability in reconciling the medical condition with continuation in the Federal or Postal career cannot be grasped, it may be time to prepare, formulate and file an effective Federal Disability Retirement application, to be filed with the U.S. Office of Personnel Management.

Most of us realize that poetry exists not amongst people, but within the ethereal universe of hopes and dreams, and when a medical condition jolts us into the realization that beauty resides not in a job or a career, but in the human relationships we form over a lifetime, then we also come to understand that health is more important than a Federal job or Postal career.

Consult with an experienced attorney who specializes in Federal Disability Retirement Law and focus upon the beauty of health, and not the poet’s choice of despair.

Sincerely,

Robert R. McGill, Esquire