HALLEX is the SSA’s publication which provides guidelines regarding how Administrative Law Judges and other Social Security Disability adjudicators are to handle various aspects of the Social Security Disability appeals process. HALLEX (also called the Hearings, Appeals, and Litigation Law Manual) is put together at the higher levels of the SSA and is written primarily to lay out the policies which are to be followed during your hearing and the rest of your appeals process.
While HALLEX is a publicly accessible document which anyone can download and read, it is written with adjudicators who have a certain degree of experience with law and legal terms in mind. If you are being represented in your Social Security Disability appeals process by an advocate or a Social Security Disability lawyer, he or she will be familiar with HALLEX and how its contents affect your individual case.
HALLEX, like much of the Social Security Disability system, can be somewhat confusing, and at times even contradictory. Because of this, those trying to win Social Security Disability benefits on appeal would be well advised to seek the counsel of a competent lawyer with experience working with Social Security Disability cases.
HALLEX is regularly updated, by way of “transmittals.” These transmittals reflect changes in SSA policy, often due to findings in Federal Court disability cases which contradict the previous Social Security Disability policies outlined in the HALLEX manual. Some changes are also made to reflect changes in the law or policy changes made at the administrative level of the SSA.
As a Social Security Disability claimant, it is unlikely that you will have a direct need for the HALLEX manual. If you do find that your case requires looking through and verifying the policies and procedures of the various Social Security Disability adjudicators, you should consider hiring a Social Security Disability attorney to help you with the process.
