Administrative

     To reiterate: Situational disability can be an issue which can defeat a disability retirement application, precisely because OPM (and if it gets to the MSPB level, the Administrative Judge) can conclude that the Psychiatric disability in question originates and results in response to the hostile workplace environment.   These three concepts are important to understand -- originate, result in, and result "in response to".   A... Read More

     The danger of falling into the trap of situational disability, which is one of a number of reasons for denying a disability retirement application, can come about quite regularly, especially because, in the face of contending with a medical disability that is serious enough to warrant changing one's career, of filing for medical disability retirement -- there is often the Agency's contentious response, of needing to have the continuity of the work accomplished, of... Read More

     The next step beyond the Merit Systems Protection Board, of course, is a choice:  You can either file an immediate appeal to the Federal Circuit Court of Appeals, or file a Petition for Review before the Merit Systems Protection Board, where the decision of the Judge at the Merit Systems Protection Board will be reviewed by a panel of 3 Administrative Judges.  Normally, I recommend taking the latter route, only because it allows for another step to win,... Read More

The third step in the process of filing and obtaining disability retirement from the Office of Personnel Management is to appeal the case to the Merit Systems Protection Board.  This is initiated after a disability retirement application has been denied twice:  First, at the initial stage, then, upon a request for reconsideration and an opportunity to submit additional medical and other documentation, if the Office of Personnel Management denies the application a second time,... Read More

     Care at every step of the way in preparing a disability retirement application is the key to winning.  The metaphorical "dots" that need to be created and connected, will ensure that each aspect of a disability retirement claim is not seen as independent entities, but a part of a larger whole.  When an individual is unrepresented, there is a tendency in filling out the multiple forms that each form is a separate piece of information. ... Read More

     Remember to not spite yourself, especially when it comes to financial considerations.  If your medical disability is forcing you to take excessive LWOP, it might be better to go "cold turkey" and stay completely out on LWOP while you file for disability retirement benefits.  This is because, once you get your disability retirement application approved, you will be paid "back pay" in a lump-sum form, back to the last day of your pay, at... Read More

     Often, pragmatic judgments and decisions must be considered at different stages of a disability retirement application.  For instance, whether to submit all of the medical documentation in your possession is a discretionary judgment which needs to be considered.  One might wonder why an applicant may withhold some or part of the medical documentation, and the answer is quite simple:  if the Office of Personnel Management requests additional... Read More

     One would assume that when a disability retirement application has been reviewed by someone at the Office of Personnel Management, and a decision of denial has been rendered, that such a decision will -- at a bare minimum -- be based upon a legally sufficient ground.  In other words, that the legal criteria asserted in the decision will be correctly delineated.  Unfortunately, that is too often not the case.  In fact, many of the legal claims... Read More

     In most instances, when I am asked to represent an applicant at the Reconsideration Stage, after he or she has attempted to obtain an approval at the Initial Stage without an attorney, I find that the prevailing mistake made is the exaggerated verbosity of the statement itself.  The old adage from Shakespeare, which (I know) is too often quoted (and misquoted), from Hamlet, Act 3, Scene 2, where Queen Gertrude responds by saying, "The lady doth protest... Read More

    Remember that in issues concerning accommodations for FERS & CSRS Federal & Postal employees, there is nothing inherently wrong with an Agency offering you modified or light duty assignments.  If your Agency deems you to be valuable, they may want to modify your position in order to keep you.  However, the mere fact that you accept and work at a "modified" position does not mean that you are thereby precluded, down the road, from filing... Read More