Outlook not so sunny for speedy Social Security claims

The U.S. Supreme Court handed down its decision on June 21, 2018, regarding Lucia v. SEC, stating the positions of Administrative Law Judges (ALJs) in the future will be appointed by the president, courts of law or heads of departments, under the Appointments Clause of the Constitution. The court’s decision was deliberately narrow, stating: (SEC judges) are “officers of the United States,” subject to the Constitution’s appointments clause. It found the process for hiring ALJs that had been in use to since 1946 was unconstitutional.