Federal Disability Retirement and MSPB Attorney Chris Attig talks about a tactic to use if OPM is unnecessarily delaying your application for FERS/CSRS disability retirement.
This entry lists the specific forms a FERS or CSRS federal employee is required to submit to their employing Agency and/or the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) in an application for disability retirement.
Federal Times.com is reporting that just a few hours ago, the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee has passed the Domestic Partnership Benefits and Obligations Act of 2009.
Generally speaking, the Act would allow federal employees in same-sex partnerships the same employment benefits as married co-workers. The benefits would include: health care, retirement and disability plans, family, medical and emergency leave, group life insurance, long-term care insurance and access to worker’s comp.
The Bill is not law, and must [...]
There are three situations where your Federal Disability Retirement benefits can be stopped or terminated, if you are under age 60.
1) If you are found to be medically recovered from your disabling condition, OPM can and does terminate the disability retirement annuity.
2) Your annuity can be stopped if you reach “restoration to earning capacity”. This occurs if, in any calendar year, your income from wages and self-employment is at least 80 percent of the current rate of basic pay from [...]
I have heard from a lot of disability retirement applicants that they have been approved for Social Security disability but later denied disability retirement by OPM. Many of the applicants that call us are confused how this can be, so this blog will attempt to explain how this might happen – and what you can do about it.
The biggest reason that you might receive different decisions – a grant of Social Security disability but not FERS disability retirement (or [...]
When an employee applies for disability retirement under CSRS or FERS, one of the elements that the employee must show is that the Agency is unable to accommodate him or her.
In order to prove this element, the agency must review all vacant positions under its jurisdiction at the same grade or pay level and tenure in the commuting area to determine if the employee meets the minimum qualification standards for any vacant position. [...]
In an earlier post, I suggested that the best way to be sure you are comfortable working with an attorney is to talk to as many as you can about your case. In doing this, it will be helpful to understand how attorneys charge fees.
1) Consultation Fee: This is a fee that most Firms charge to determine, initially, if your case is one that the Firm is interested in. Some firms do not charge consultation fees, some firms [...]
You receive the letter from OPM, open it, and find that OPM denied your application for disability retirement benefits under FERS/CSRS. Chances are, you’ll read the letter over and over, and the more you read it, the less sense it will make. What do you do?
At this point, your choices depend on what stage of the application you are at. If this is the first indication you have received that OPM [...]
Earlier, I posted about the process to seek waiver (or reduction of repayment schedule) of an overpayment of retirement benefits.
To give you an idea how this works in reality, I thought I’d break down a recent MSPB Initial Decision (San Francisco Regional Office, October 2008).
In that case, the Appellant received an overpayment of retirement benefits. She had applied, and was granted, disability retirement from OPM in 2004. It took until 2007 for her to receive [...]
How much will my disability retirement annuity be?
Generally speaking, your FERS disability retirement annuity will be 60% of your high-3 average salary minus 100% of your Social security benefit for the first 12 months. After 12 months, the FERS disability retirement annuity is reduced to 40% of your high-3 average salary minus 60% of your Social Security benefit. Please see the OPM Website for a chart that explains when this general computation [...]
Attig Law Firm is a progressive and professional firm with a uniquely creative approach to the practice of law. Mr. Attig believes that there is more than one way to skin a cat; that sometimes it pays to go against the grain, and that every now and again, it is essential to speak truth to power. He is willing to challenge "conventional wisdom" to help you achieve your goals.
