A very common question from disability claimants is how much an attorney will cost and how we’ll get paid.
The good news is that almost all Social Security disability attorneys work on contingency, meaning they only get paid if and when you win. And those payments are made automatically from the Social Security Administration from any backpay that you’re entitled to.
Under current regulations, a Social Security disability attorney who wins a case before the agency is entitled to 25 percent of a claimant’s backpay, though this amount is not exceed $7,200 per case.
Social Security has now announced that beginning later this year, that maximum amount will increase to $9,200 per case. And after that, it will be attached to cost of living increases, meaning the maximum fee will go up a little bit more every year.
While that might sound like a lot, it’s necessary for Social Security law firms to stay in operation given the high inflation the U.S. economy has faced in recent years, and pegging the maximum fee to inflation will ensure that for years to come.
It’s also important to note that the $9,200 number will not apply to every case. If you receive $10,000 in backpay, that doesn’t mean your attorney will take almost all of that. In that situation, they’ll only receive 25 percent of your backpay, which would be $2,500.
Of course, any attorney who represents you in a disability case should be transparent about their fee structure and be willing to answer any questions you may have about it.
