Inevitably, claimants will lose their case – especially during the Initial and Reconsideration stages of the SSA Disability Determination Process.  That takes the claimant into the Hearing stages, where the case is laid out before the Administrative Law Judge (ALJ).  This person then has the authority to render a “de novo” decision – meaning not bound by any prior decisions and taking into account all aspects of a claimant’s record.  This is also where the Social Security Vocational Expert (SSVE) performs the majority of their contracted work – either in person or via telephonic means.  As you’ll see, over 275,000 cases a year go in front of the team of ALJs.  This means the work for the SSVE is in high demand!