Case Type Unspecified
Unknown
Well it has been over a year since I contracted with Arrow Legal to work on my disability case. We submitted the original paperwork. November 7th, I looked online at SSA and it said it was denied. I took a screen shot and sent it to Loren, the attorney. He made no contact nor did he start the process to appeal the decision. I called multiple times and I travelled over an hour to his office to emphasize the importance of the 60 deadline. Same excuse. I haven’t received a letter from SSA so there is nothing we can do??? He refused to contact SSA to see what the problem was. It would take too long for him to do that. I submitted an appeal just before day 60, to keep it going. I talked with SSA multiple times to find out what to do. Loren during the year of the application did not contact my accident attorney who had done all the work of collecting my medical records AND had hired professional evaluations of my conditions. He didn’t bother, so I sent him that information. He didn’t submit them. I pushed and pushed for him to do something to help my case. Nothing. My most recent contact was with his limited English assistant who didn’t understand the difference between medical records and expert evaluations. If you need legal help for disability, don’t call this office. The thing they are good at is telling you they did everything right and nothing wrong. Bad company. Poor service. Read their responses to all poor evaluations. They didn’t do anything wrong. They don’t do anything period.
Owner response
Dear Mr. VanAlfen and Other Readers of These Reviews,<br><br>Mr. VanAlfen was understandably frustrated by this situation, as were we.<br><br>Mr. VanAlfen retained our firm on February 11, 2024. By February 26, 2024, we processed his retention paperwork, disability report, and authorization to disclose with the Social Security Administration (SSA). His retention paperwork was also mailed to the SSA Ogden office on March 7, 2024. On March 15, 2024, the SSA Ogden office acknowledged our representation and correctly listed our office address.<br><br>In November 2024, Mr. VanAlfen informed us that he had been told “by telephone” that his claim was going to be denied. We advised him that SSA must issue a written denial to both the claimant and counsel before an appeal can be filed. Around the same time, Mr. VanAlfen changed addresses. We processed that update on November 21, 2024 to ensure future correspondence was sent correctly.<br><br>Between December 2024 and February 2025, we had multiple communications with SSA attempting to obtain the written denial so that we could file an appeal. We also submitted medical evidence on January 6, 2025 and additional records on February 13, 2025.<br><br>Although SSA did not provide us with the denial as required, Mr. VanAlfen received correspondence at his new address on February 28, 2025 and provided it to us in mid-March. We ultimately obtained a copy of the denial letter on March 7, 2025. That letter reflected that his claim had been denied on November 7, 2024, but it was incorrectly addressed to “Loren Lambert” at the Ogden SSA office address—an address that is not ours and is, in fact, SSA’s own location.<br><br>Upon receiving the misaddressed denial, we promptly filed a Request for Reconsideration on March 10, 2025. On March 13, 2025, the Provo SSA office confirmed receipt of that appeal. Shortly thereafter, despite our commitment to correcting SSA’s mailing error and continuing representation, Mr. VanAlfen asked us to withdraw from his case.<br><br>We understand Mr. VanAlfen’s frustration. Unfortunately, SSA mailing and processing errors are not uncommon. Over the years, we have encountered lost paperwork, misdirected notices, and repeated failures to acknowledge representation, sometimes requiring congressional assistance to resolve. While frustrating, the delay in this matter was relatively brief, and we were actively working to protect Mr. VanAlfen’s appeal rights. Based on the nature of his claim, we also anticipated that a hearing would likely be required to obtain benefits.<br><br>We hope Mr. VanAlfen has since had a successful hearing. Our office has handled thousands of Social Security claims, and situations like this are rare. We regret that this process gave the impression that his interests were not being advanced appropriately.