Privacy note: “Geraldine” is not the client’s real name. Identifying details have been modified to protect client confidentiality.
B. Perry Morrison, Jr., attorney at the Morrison Law Firm in Wilson, North Carolina, represented Geraldine (name changed for privacy) — a disabled woman denied Social Security disability benefits at every level of the administrative appeals system.
Morrison fought Geraldine’s case through four ALJ hearings, three Appeals Council appeals, and two federal lawsuits against the Commissioner of Social Security over six years. Morrison secured a full award of SSD benefits, nearly $80,000 in back benefits.
Geraldine knew winning disability benefits would not be easy. When the Social Security Administration denied her initial application, she was disappointed but not surprised — the SSA denies roughly two out of every three first-time applications nationwide.
She asked around the Wilson, Nash County, and Edgecombe County areas for a disability attorney who would not give up on a difficult case. One name kept coming up: B. Perry Morrison, Jr. of the Morrison Law Firm.
Geraldine read the firm’s five-star client reviews and noticed a pattern — past clients wrote that Morrison stayed in it for the long haul. She scheduled a consultation, met with Mr. Morrison, and retained his firm to handle her appeal.
Morrison told her from the start that her case would not be an easy one. What neither of them knew yet was that it would take six years before a medical expert give testimony at the final hearing and would finally confirm what Geraldine had known all along.
Morrison and his staff thoroughly prepared Geraldine’s case, conducted an extensive review of her medical records, and prepared a detailed legal brief for the Administrative Law Judge, citing every favorable piece of evidence in the record.
Morrison personally drove Geraldine to Raleigh for the hearing and represented her before the ALJ. Without appropriate justification, the ALJ denied her claim.
Morrison appealed to the Social Security Appeals Council and filed a brief identifying the specific legal errors the ALJ committed at the hearing. The Appeals Council agreed, reversed the ALJ’s decision, and remanded the case for a new hearing.
The same ALJ conducted the second hearing — and denied Geraldine again, this time basing the denial on entirely different criteria than the first decision. Morrison appealed to the Appeals Council a second time. The Council upheld the ALJ’s ruling.
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Because the next level of appeal requires litigation in U.S. District Court, Morrison coordinated with a federal court litigator to file a lawsuit against the Commissioner of Social Security on Geraldine’s behalf. The disability appeal was now in its third year.
The U.S. District Court set aside the ALJ’s second decision, found a presumption of judicial bias, and remanded the case to a different ALJ for a completely new hearing. Morrison prepared the case a third time, updated the medical records review, and drove Geraldine to Raleigh again.
The new ALJ reviewed her predecessor’s reasoning and concluded that Geraldine could perform gainful employment. Morrison appealed to the Appeals Council once more. Denied.
Morrison asked his federal court litigation colleague to sue the Commissioner of Social Security a second time. The U.S. District Court issued a strongly worded remand — in effect directing the ALJ to get it right.
Morrison and his staff fought Geraldine’s case across every level of the Social Security appeals system:
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At the fourth hearing, the ALJ called in an independent medical expert, who spent approximately ten minutes explaining the full scope of Geraldine’s impairments.
When the ALJ asked whether those impairments would disable her from working, the doctor’s answer was unequivocal: “Yes, ma’am. Absolutely.”
Case over. Six years, three appeals, two lawsuits, and four ALJ hearings later, Geraldine was finally awarded Social Security disability benefits. The government owed her nearly $80,000 in back benefits.
She cried for most of the drive home from Raleigh. When she parted with Mr. Morrison in the lobby of his law firm, she hugged him and said, “Bless you for hanging in there all these years. I was always so worried that you would give up, but you never did.”
Most disability applicants give up after the first denial. Many attorneys withdraw after the second. Geraldine’s case required a disability attorney willing to prepare four hearing packages, coordinate two federal lawsuits, and fight through six years of procedural resistance.
When an independent medical expert finally reviewed the record without institutional bias, the answer took ten seconds.
When a disability denial feels like the end of the road, the Morrison Law Firm treats it as the beginning. Contact B. Perry Morrison, Jr. to discuss your Social Security disability claim at no upfront cost.
How many times can the Social Security Administration deny a disability claim before a claimant runs out of options?
There is no fixed cap on the number of appeals a Social Security disability claimant can pursue. Geraldine’s case moved through four ALJ hearings, three Appeals Council appeals, and two U.S. District Court lawsuits before the ALJ’s independent medical expert confirmed her disability and ended the case with nearly $80,000 in back benefits.
Can a disability attorney sue the Commissioner of Social Security in federal court after the Appeals Council denies a claim?
Federal court litigation is the next level of appeal after the Appeals Council upholds an ALJ’s denial. Morrison coordinated with a federal court litigator who filed suit against the Commissioner of Social Security twice on Geraldine’s behalf — the first lawsuit resulted in a finding of judicial bias, and the second produced a strongly worded remand.
What does it mean when a federal court remands a Social Security disability case back to an ALJ?
A remand sends the case back to the ALJ with instructions to correct identified errors and conduct a new hearing. In Geraldine’s case, the first remand reassigned her to a different ALJ after the court found a presumption of bias, and the second remand directed the ALJ to apply the evidence correctly.
How long did Geraldine’s Social Security disability case take from initial denial to final award?
Geraldine’s case took six years from the date Morrison entered the case to the final hearing, where the independent medical expert confirmed her disability. The extended timeline resulted from repeated ALJ denials, two rounds of federal litigation, and reassignment to a new ALJ midway through the process.
What is an independent medical expert in a Social Security disability hearing?
An independent medical expert is a physician retained by the ALJ to review the claimant’s medical records and testify about the nature and severity of the impairments. In Geraldine’s fourth hearing, the independent expert spent approximately ten minutes explaining her condition and confirmed without hesitation that her impairments disabled her from working.
Does The Morrison Law Firm handle Social Security disability cases that have already been denied?
The Morrison Law Firm represents Social Security disability claimants across Eastern North Carolina whose claims have been denied at any level — initial application, reconsideration, ALJ hearing, or Appeals Council review. Geraldine retained Morrison after her initial denial, and he represented her through every subsequent stage over six years.
What are back benefits in a Social Security disability case?
Back benefits are the accumulated monthly disability payments owed to a claimant from the established onset date of disability through the date of the favorable decision. Geraldine’s six-year case produced nearly $80,000 in back benefits because the government owed payments covering the full period her claim was improperly denied.
How much does it cost to hire a Social Security disability attorney in North Carolina?
Social Security disability attorneys typically work on a contingency fee basis, meaning the attorney collects a fee only if the claimant wins benefits. Morrison represented Geraldine for six years across four hearings and two federal lawsuits at no upfront cost, collecting a fee only after the favorable decision.
Can an ALJ be removed from a Social Security disability case for bias?
A federal court can remand a case to a different ALJ if the record supports a presumption of judicial bias. In Geraldine’s case, the U.S. District Court found that the original ALJ’s repeated denials on shifting grounds warranted reassignment, and the court remanded the case to a new ALJ for a fresh hearing.
Why do most Social Security disability claims get denied on the first application?
The SSA denies roughly two out of three initial disability applications nationwide, often due to insufficient medical documentation, procedural errors, or strict interpretation of the disability standard. Geraldine’s initial denial was the first step in a six-year fight that ultimately required federal court intervention to correct.
About the Author
B. Perry Morrison Jr. is a North Carolina attorney (Bar No. 16376) and founder of Morrison Law Firm, PLLC in Wilson, North Carolina. Since 1989, he has represented injured workers, Social Security Disability claimants, and personal injury victims throughout Eastern North Carolina, handling more than 3,000 workers' compensation claims before the North Carolina Industrial Commission. He concentrates his practice on workers' compensation, Social Security Disability, personal injury, and wrongful death cases, representing claimants exclusively rather than employers or insurance companies.
Mr. Morrison is admitted to practice before the North Carolina Supreme Court, all North Carolina state courts, the U.S. Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals, and the U.S. District Courts for the Eastern and Middle Districts of North Carolina. He has held leadership roles within the North Carolina Bar Association, including serving as Chair of the Litigation Section, and has earned the AV Preeminent® peer rating for legal ability and professional ethics. Through decades of advocacy, he has helped injured and disabled individuals navigate complex legal claims while protecting their rights and access to benefits.
Morrison Law Firm represents injured workers across Eastern North Carolina from its Wilson, NC, office. The firm accepts workers' compensation, Social Security Disability, and personal injury cases from Wilson, Nash, Edgecombe, Pitt, Martin, Wayne, Johnston, Greene, Halifax, Northampton, Warren, Wake, Harnett, Cumberland, Sampson, and Vance counties.
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