Attorney Beth Hittel joined the Disparti Law Group, P.A. in January of 2011, focusing on a practice devoted to helping people navigate the complicated world of social security and disability benefits. Prior to this practice, she worked as a law clerk representing corporate clients initiating and processing foreclosure proceedings. “I didn’t feel like I was helping people as much as I imagined I would in the legal field,” she says. “I get to help people in this line of work, and that is what is important to me”.
Hittel sees herself as more than an attorney and she has a passion for working with people whose lives have been altered due to a variety of unfortunate circumstances. “We are advocates and counselors.
From 2011 to 2018, I represented a claimant through three hearings with Administrative Law Judges and two appeals with the Social Security Appeals Council until we ultimately received a fully favorable decision. Due to a number of biases and unfavorable SSA regulations, this claimant was mistreated and misjudged, but I refused to give up on her claim. Throughout those seven years, my client became homeless, moved to other states, and lost contact. I always made every effort to find her, to feed her, and even visit her when she was in the hospital. This client was one of my first disability clients, and remains the symbol of why I do this job.
Some of my most rewarding cases involve claimant’s with intellectual disabilities – I consider this one of my areas, or disabilities, of expertise. Most disability cases require longitudinal medical evidence to prove the inability to work. Yet, there is no real medical treatment for an intellectual impairment. The challenge requires me to prove the longstanding existence of this impairment, accommodated work settings, the inability to live independently, and to argue for the testing that these claimant’s deserve to prove an impairment that is invisible and unrecognizable to the average individual. These cases require a unique ability to advocate to the Judges, to help them have the same understanding of the claim.
Some of my greatest personal successes have come from representing Veterans and First Responders. Each of these selfless individuals deserve the utmost respect for their bravery and sacrifices, and their careers expose them to conditions that often lead to Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder. These claims offer a unique opportunity to talk about a claimant’s past, when most claims are focused on the present. Yet, you have to possess the skills and knowledge required to highlight for a Judge how such a condition can worsen over time, how an individual who was exposed years ago can suddenly deteriorate with a triggering event, and how when this happens, this state of mental health is often impossible to recover from to a point that an individual can return to work.
Bachelor of Science with a Major in Finance from the University of Central Florida
Juris Doctorate from Florida Coastal School of Law
Florida Justice Association
West Pasco Bar Association
National Organization of Social Security Claimant’s Representatives
Rotary Club of Holiday
“I’ve learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel” – Maya Angelou
In a profession of helping people, whether injured or disabled, or sometimes both, it is important to me for my clients to know that regardless of the win, the loss, or the injustices that still plague our legal system, they were heard, they were cared for, and their best interests were in mind. At the end of the day, I always hope that each of my clients know how much I truly care about their well-being.
Larry Wins!
