Last week, President Trump told Congress he has the constitutional power to fire administrative law judges (ALJ) at will, a declaration that conflicts with a statute stating ALJs cannot be removed without cause. Out of a total of approximately 1700 ALJs employed in the Federal government, 1500 work for the Social Security Administration, with the responsibility of holding hearings for Social Security Disability (SSD) and Supplemental Security Insurance (SSI) claimants. ALJs review claimant’s medical records, meet with them and their representatives either in person or remotely via video hearings, and decide if the claimant is eligible for SSD or SSI benefits.
“Currently, nationwide there is a backlog of more than 1 million SSD claims, and claimants are waiting up to and over two years to get a hearing with an ALJ,” said Jeffrey M. Freedman, managing partner, Jeffrey Freedman Attorneys, PLLC. “Social Security Disability is a program designed to keep people out of poverty, should they become disabled and no longer are capable of working at a job in the local economy.”
ALJs are appointed by the heads of agencies such as the SSA, after a vetting process that includes meeting both licensure and experience requirements, and passing the OPM (Office of Personnel Management) administrative law judge competitive examination. ALJs must be licensed attorneys and have practiced law for seven years or more. Typically, an ALJ conducts between 500 and 700 hearings each year. ALJs serve as independent impartial triers of fact in formal proceedings requiring a decision on the record after the opportunity for a hearing.
“Clearly, there is no wiggle room here for letting ALJs go,” Freedman said. “The 1500 serving the SSA are necessary to process the claims of Americans who have paid their taxes in good faith, and who were promised that if they worked and paid into Social Security they would have a basic income to live on should they be injured or become too ill to work.”
ALJs are supposed to be protected from political posturing — and allowing the current administration the power to fire them at will is not protecting them or the population they serve.
Cutting the number of ALJs would be an inhumane act affecting a portion of Americans who have been both financially and medically devastated by life events beyond their control.