Copyright Notice & Terms of Use

This SOP and all related materials are proprietary to Disability Advocacy Group, LLC. These materials are licensed for internal use only by the purchasing attorney or law firm.

Reproduction, distribution, or modification for resale, teaching, or commercial purposes is strictly prohibited without prior written permission. All rights reserved.

© 2025 Disability Advocacy Group, LLC.

📚 Introduction

The Appeals Council (AC) is the final administrative stage in the Social Security Disability process. It follows an unfavorable decision at the ALJ hearing level. At this stage, the Appeals Council has the authority to uphold, reverse, or remand the ALJ’s decision. Although fully favorable reversals are rare, remands for a new hearing are more common.

This SOP provides a step‑by‑step process for reviewing ALJ decisions, filing the Appeals Council request, preparing and submitting briefs, monitoring for outcomes, and transitioning cases to the appropriate next stage, whether remand, approval, or federal court. It ensures deadlines are met, client communication remains consistent, and advocacy standards are upheld throughout this critical stage.

📹 Training Resources

Note: This section is intentionally left open to include firm-specific video training. The procedures outlined in this SOP should be customized based on your firm's legal strategy, technology tools, staff roles, and internal workflows.

We recommend creating or inserting videos for the following key actions:

• How to file an AC appeal online
• How to upload the AC brief in the ERE system
• How to monitor decision status in ERE
• How to manage the brief request workflow (if using an outside service)

Once recorded, your firm can link or reference internal training videos in this section of your own SOP system.