For DAP Advocates
Empire Justice provides statewide support, training, and technical assistance to legal services providers funded by New York State’s Disability Advocacy Program (DAP). This includes Continuing Legal Education (CLE) trainings, technical case assistance, and the publication of the quarterly newsletter Disability Law News. We coordinate regional and statewide task force meetings, and collaborate with advocates in New York and nationally to advocate for improvements in Social Security policy. We also represent individuals statewide in their individual federal court appeals and engage in impact litigation.
DAP Portal
Our private DAP portal provides DAP training resources and more. This is a password protected area.
For Legal Help in Monroe County
Empire Justice’s Rochester office provides free legal services to low-income New Yorkers in Monroe County whose Social Security or SSI disability benefits have been wrongfully denied or cut off. We provide assistance at all stages of the appeals process.
Contact Us
For help in Monroe County, contact the DAP team by email at DAPinfo@empirejustice.org or by phone at (585) 454-4060.
For Legal Help in Other Counties
Helpful Links and Resources
SSA Forms
SSA Publications
DAP Team
Angela (Angie) Hale
Bailey Steinhauer
Doris Cortes
Eleanor LaRussa
Emilia Sicilia
Jenny Goldstein Prahl
Katherine Courtney
Resources
- Resource
As reported in our July 2025 issue, the Court of Appeals agreed to hear Andersen v. Hein, ____ N.E.3d_____ (2026), a case addressing whether the value of work performed in a work experience program must be credited against interim assistance recovery. The Court has now issued its decision. On May 26, 2026, the New York State Court of Appeals issued
- Resource
The Social Security Administration (SSA) maintains a sex designation for every number holder in its Numerical Identification System, known as the NUMIDENT. While a Social Security card does not display a person’s sex, the sex field in the NUMIDENT appears in SSA records used for benefit administration, identity verification, and data exchanges with other agencies. The sex […]
- Resource
The Social Security Administration (SSA) has updated its Program Operations Manual System (POMS) with a new section addressing the treatment of 530A/Trump Accounts under the income and resource rules for Supplement Security Income (SSI). SSA’s new instruction, POMS SI 01120.250, will exempt these accounts from being counted against a person’s income or resources for purposes of SSI eligibility until January 1 of the calendar year that the child turns 18 years old. 530A/Trump Accounts are a new custodial-style Individual Retirement […]
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On July 3, 2026, the Social Security Administration (SSA), through the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA), released its 2026 Regulatory Agenda. It includes fifteen rules in the proposed or final stages. Notably, the agenda omits two prior proposals that advocates had strongly opposed: the rescission of the public assistance household rule, and the so-called “Mega-Reg” proposal. It was reported in November 2025 that the agency had backed away from the Mega-Reg. The […]
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In May 2026, the Social Security Administration (SSA) announced that Fifth Third Bank is the new financial agency for the Direct Express program. The U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Bureau of the Fiscal Service made the selection following its procurement process. As of May 2026, all new enrollments in Direct Express are being processed through Fifth Third Bank. Current Direct Express cardholders will see […]
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The reconsideration stage of disability appeals is regarded by many Social Security disability advocates as a frustrating waste of time, adding several months to an appeal and providing little more than a “rubber stamp” on the initial denial. Recently, new legislation was introduced to allow claimants to bypass reconsideration and proceed directly to a hearing before an administrative law judge (ALJ). Reconsideration is a desk review conducted by state Disability Determination Services (DDS), and […]
Training Videos
DAP training videos are available only in our password-protected DAP Portal for DAP-funded advocates
- Training
Appealing at the reconsideration level may often feel like a frustrating waste of time but many of our clients do nonetheless find success at this stage. This Disability Advocacy Program...
- Training
This Disability Advocacy Program (DAP) lunchtime session will focus on the many ways we can tell our clients’ stories effectively at a hearing, including how to pick the best kind...
- Training
Join us for a CLE on handling State Supplement Program (SSP) benefits where you will gain practical strategies for navigating the State Supplement to SSI benefits. This Disability Advocacy Program...
- Training
Join us for an in-depth CLE on Handling Childhood Disability SSI Claims, where you will gain practical strategies for navigating one of the most complex areas of Social Security law....
- Training
This Disability Advocacy Program (DAP) training will look at how to approach vocational witness cross-examination since the issuance of Social Security Ruling (SSR) 24-3p. Good vocational witness cross-examination starts with...
Next, we move on to tips for how to organize cross-examination and then talk about how cross-examination, and the advocate’s responsibilities, changed with SSR 24-3p. We will also offer a range of “baseline” questions for each hearing.
- Training
This training will introduce the fundamentals of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and its growing role in legal practice. Participants will learn how AI tools are being developed and specifically used for...
Recent News
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Welcome to the April 2026 edition of Disability Law News. This issue tracks several new developments with Social Security Administration (SSA) disability policy, technology, and operations. We cover recent concerns related to SSA’s reported sharing of appointment information with ICE and other data-sharing issues, the launch of a new team at SSA focused on SSI, the delay of SSA’s efforts
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Disability Law News
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Welcome to the April 2026 edition of Disability Law News. This issue tracks several new developments with Social Security Administration (SSA) disability policy, technology, and operations. We cover recent concerns related to SSA’s reported sharing of appointment information with ICE and other data-sharing issues, the launch of a new team at SSA focused on SSI, the delay of SSA’s efforts
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Welcome to the January 2026 edition of Disability Law News. In this issue, we lead with an update regarding the Social Security Administration’s decision to withdraw its sweeping “MegaReg” proposal to overhaul the vocational rules. We also cover troubling new details about the misuse of SSA systems and the agency’s ongoing expansion of its data–sharing. Readers will find updates on
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Welcome to the October 2025 quarterly issue of Disability Law News. This month, we begin with a look at recent leadership changes at the Social Security Administration (SSA), including Commissioner Frank Bisignano’s recent appointment at the IRS, and the implications of the federal government shutdown on agency operations and court deadlines. We also report on […]
- News
Welcome to this quarter’s edition of Disability Law News. This July 2025 issue features an update regarding the upheaval in leadership occurring at the Social Security Administration (SSA), including news regarding the confirmation of its new Commissioner, Frank Bisignano. It also gives an update regarding SSA’s use of Social Security number data for immigration enforcement, […]
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Welcome to this quarter’s edition of the Disability Law News. This month, we spotlight sweeping changes led by the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), which have begun to reshape SSA operations, staffing, and regulatory priorities. From proposals to reclassify thousands of SSA employees under revived “Schedule F” authority to DOGE’s growing influence on benefit adjudication […]
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Welcome to the new edition of Disability Law News. This January 2025 issue includes: Welcome to the January 2025 edition of Disability Law News: this issue covers important information about the new overpayment POMS, and the new Social Security Ruling (SSR) 24-3p on vocational testimony. It also features an introduction to Katie Courtney, as the […]
Litigation
- Resource
This “Bulletin Board” contains information about recent disability decisions from the United States Supreme Court and the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit. The Second Circuit summaries, as well as earlier decisions, are also available here. Synopses of non-precedential summary orders issued by the Second Circuit are available here. We will continue […]
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Gene Doyle of People Organized for Our Rights, Inc. (P.O.O.R.) has updated his invaluable EAJA rate charts with the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) of the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) Consumer Price Index (CPI) data through May 2024. The charts include data for: New York – Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ-PA Northeast, and U.S. City Average. […]
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Federal Equal Access to Justice (EAJA) rate charts (pdf)and spreadsheets (Microsoft Excel), have been updated for through June 2022. New York – Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ-PA Northeast, and U.S. City Average. Supporting Documents: Federal EAJA Hourly Rates – March 1996 through June 2022 (Pdf) Federal EAJA Hourly Rates – March 1996 through June 2022 (Excel)
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April 2020 Selected Second Circuit Summary Orders Ferraro v. Saul, —F. App’x—, 2020 WL 1189399 (2d Cir. Mar. 12, 2020) (pro se) – court remanded, finding the ALJ failed to apply the Burgess factors or provide “good reasons” for assigning reduced weight to the opinions of plaintiff’s treating physicians. The ALJ’s mere acknowledgement of the […]
