Also known as:disability payment · disability benefits
Written by attorneys · grounded in primary & secondary sources — see below
Compensation paid to replace wages or earning capacity lost because of physical or mental impairment.
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Cases
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How it applies
Common Examples
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Written Response Before Benefit Cutoff
Derek Douglas received monthly Social Security disability payments after a workplace injury left him unable to work. The agency sent written notice that new medical records suggested improvement and invited him to submit written rebuttal evidence. Derek responded with updated physician reports. When the agency terminated benefits after review, Derek received a full evidentiary hearing and retroactive payments upon prevailing. The written exchange and later hearing satisfied due process because they balanced his interest in continued payments against the agency's administrative needs.
State Sovereign Immunity Bars Retroactive Award
Diane Dawson sued state officials in federal court seeking retroactive disability payments that had been wrongfully withheld under a state program. The court dismissed the claim for monetary relief against the state treasury. The Eleventh Amendment barred the retroactive award even though prospective injunctive relief remained available.
Darrell Duncan received Social Security disability benefits as a disabled adult child of a deceased worker. After Darrell married, the agency terminated the benefits. The termination was upheld because the statute ended secondary benefits upon marriage regardless of the recipient's continued disability.
Califano v. Jobst434 U.S. 47 (1977)
Burden of Proof on Claimant
Daphne Doyle sought permanent total disability payments under the Longshore Act after a maritime injury. The agency denied the claim because Daphne failed to prove that her condition prevented all suitable employment. The burden remained on the claimant to establish the extent of disability rather than shifting to the employer.
Director, Office of Workers’ Compensation Programs v. Greenwich Collieries512 U.S. 267, 114 S. Ct. 2251, 129 L.Ed.2d 221, 1994 AMC 2855 (1994)
Gender-Based Benefit Distinction Invalid
Damian Decker's wife died leaving minor children. He applied for Social Security survivors benefits based on her earnings record but was denied because the statute provided such benefits only to widows. The denial was unconstitutional because the gender distinction lacked a substantial relation to an important governmental objective.
Weinberger v. Wiesenfeld420 U.S. 636 (1975)
Railroad Retirement Preempts Community Division
Destiny Davis sought a community-property share of her deceased husband's railroad retirement disability annuity under state law. Federal law preempted the claim because the Railroad Retirement Act contains an antialienation provision and integrates with Social Security rules that fix benefit amounts without regard to state community-property regimes.
Boggs v. Boggs520 U.S. 833 (1997)
Common questions
Frequently Asked
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Are disability payments considered marital property subject to division?+
True disability payments replace future earning capacity and are treated as the recipient's separate property. Only the portion that substitutes for vested retirement benefits may be characterized as marital property subject to equitable distribution.
Supporting sources
What process is required before terminating Social Security disability benefits?+
Written notice and an opportunity to respond in writing must precede termination. A full evidentiary hearing with possible retroactive benefits satisfies due process when the claimant prevails.
Supporting sources
How do courts treat workers' compensation disability awards in tort actions?+
Payments from independent sources such as workers' compensation or union funds are collateral sources. They do not reduce the tortfeasor's liability under the collateral source rule.
Supporting sources
424 U.S. 319 (1976)Constitutional Law
…food stamps, public assistance, or the "many other important programs, both public and private, which contain provisions for disability payments affecting a substantial portion of the work force . . . ." Richardson v. Belcher , 404 U. S., at 85-87 (Douglas, J., dissenting). See Staff of the House Committee on Ways and Means, Report…