advice on appeal please

I have an appeal date of 21st March 2014, in which I am appealing against my ESA coming to an end very soon and would like to be placed in the SG from the WRAG.

I have only just received my appeal papers, I should have had them last August, but didnt know this until I got the letter informing me of the date of the appeal. I have spent the last 5 weeks trying to obtain the papers and now I have them, my local branch of DIAL who were going to help/advise/represent me, say its too late for them to peruse the papers as they have a full caseload. I could ask for an adjournment but its just prolonging the agony. Unless i can get help from somewhere else, i will be going it alone at the Tribunal apart from my partner, and I am extremely anxious.

My GP has done a letter for me listing my mental and physical health problems but has not elaborated much even though I was charged 40 pounds for it. I believe I can submit my own notes of my problems to the Tribunal?, so i intend to do that if i can. I have written quite a few notes to submit, and I feel have put a good case together. I wondered if this would carry much weight regarding the Tribunals' decision?

Also please could you advise me regarding telling them how I travelled to the Tribunal, what clothes are appropriate and Ive heard they sometimes ask if you have made yourself a drink that morning! I assume these are trick questions, but how to respond to them please? many thanks.

darryl wrote: I have an appeal date of 21st March 2014, in which I am appealing against my ESA coming to an end very soon and would like to be placed in the SG from the WRAG.

I have only just received my appeal papers, I should have had them last August, but didnt know this until I got the letter informing me of the date of the appeal. I have spent the last 5 weeks trying to obtain the papers and now I have them, my local branch of DIAL who were going to help/advise/represent me, say its too late for them to peruse the papers as they have a full caseload. I could ask for an adjournment but its just prolonging the agony. Unless i can get help from somewhere else, i will be going it alone at the Tribunal apart from my partner, and I am extremely anxious.

My GP has done a letter for me listing my mental and physical health problems but has not elaborated much even though I was charged 40 pounds for it. I believe I can submit my own notes of my problems to the Tribunal?, so i intend to do that if i can. I have written quite a few notes to submit, and I feel have put a good case together. I wondered if this would carry much weight regarding the Tribunals' decision?

Also please could you advise me regarding telling them how I travelled to the Tribunal, what clothes are appropriate and Ive heard they sometimes ask if you have made yourself a drink that morning! I assume these are trick questions, but how to respond to them please? many thanks.

Hi d,

I would shy away from mentioning that one of the reasons for your appeal is due to the fact that your CB ESA payments are due to cease.

Concentrate on showing that you should have been placed into the SG at the time of the adverse WRAG award, giving reasons why.

You could draw reference to the G.P. letter in that it substantiates your medical conditions, and then go into details of the limitations that you suffer as a result of said medical conditions, and how said limitations qualify you under one or more of The SG Descriptors :

Qualifying for the Support Group

SG (LCWRA)Schedule 3 Descriptors

You should also remember that the following applies to entry to The SG and The SG activities/ descriptors :

ESA Reg 34. (2) Applicable to Support Group :

“A descriptor applies to a claimant if that descriptor applies to the claimant for the majority of the time or, as the case may be, on the majority of occasions on which the claimant undertakes or attempts to undertake the activity described by that descriptor”

www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/2008/794/regulation/34/made

In other words, not only must you be able to carry out any of the activities for the majority of the time (>50%) to be deemed as being able to do so, with respect to The SG, you must also be able to carry out the activity on the majority of occasions that you attempt them.

You should send any evidence that you have to The Tribunal Service (TS) preferably no later than a fortnight or so before the hearing.

Send copies and keep originals, you may wish to apply the same safeguards as when : Sending Documents to the DWP or ATOS

You should also try and compile a "Submission" which ideally should be no more than one or two sides of A4.

In this you should highlight in bullet point form the descriptors that you feel apply to you, and cross reference to evidence within the evidence pack/bundle or any extra evidence that you are providing.

It is always good practice to number the pages of any evidence that you are providing, and number the paragraphs. This make it easier to refer to in your submission.

You can take evidence on the day, but this should be limited to one or two A4 sides.

If you are to do this, make 4 copies of each, and hand them to The Clerk on arrival.

Your mode of travel to The Tribunal may be taken into account, if this is contradictory to any of your limitations.

As regards how you should dress, you should do so within your limitations, as smart as would be reasonable.

You should of course answer all questions honestly, taking into account that assumptions (negative or positive) may be made from any responses that you give.

See also :

Adding pages to your submission

Disability Rights UK Factsheet - Appeals and Mandatory Reconsiderations.

DRUK Factsheet - Appeals Hearings and How to Prepare for them.

MOJ Video of ESA Appeals Process and Tribunal

GOOD PRACTICE GUIDANCE FOR THOSE WHO APPEAR BEFORE APPEAL TRIBUNALS

Preparing for a Tribunal

I hope this helps, and please keep us updated.

Good luck !!!

bro58