PHILADELPHIA DISABILITY LAWYER - Key Persons

Job Titles:

• Senior Associate at the Law Firm of Chermol & Fishman

Ashish A. Agrawal is a senior associate at the law firm of Chermol & Fishman, LLC practicing Social Security and Personal Injury matters. At Chermol & Fishman, LLC, Mr. Agrawal oversees disability cases from initial applications all the way through appeals in Federal Court. Prior to joining Chermol & Fishman, LLC, Mr. Agrawal worked for a personal injury firm where he oversaw matters in toxic tort, products liability, and mass torts. Mr. Agrawal graduated from Rutgers University, School of Law in Camden, NJ in 2013 where he was very active in the school's civil practice clinic where he handled matters in Social Security, Immigration, Contract Disputes and Family Law. Mr. Agrawal is admitted to the bars of Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and the Eastern District of Pennsylvania. Mr. Agrawal has dedicatedly volunteered for Habitat for Humanity for over 10 years. He also is a volunteer attorney for Christian Legal Services in Philadelphia where he provides pro-bono legal work for those in need. Mr. Agrawal is on the Board of Directors at Equal Access Legal Services. Mr. Agrawal is fluent in Hindi, Gujarati and Marathi. Education 2000 - 2002 Cumberland County College Liberal Arts and Sciences/Liberal Studies 2002 - 2006 Rutgers University Bachelor of Arts (BA), Criminal Justice 2009 - 2013 Rutgers Law School

Mr. Chermol provided national and regional training to SSA's administrative law judges with respect to disability law and how to issue legally defensible decisions. In coordination with the Department of Justice, he provided national training to SSA's attorneys on effective oral and written appellate advocacy. Mr. Chermol was a member of the National Disability Policy Committee for President Barack Obama's 2008 Campaign and in that capacity served as Regional Co-Director on disability issues in Pennsylvania. Since 1998, Mr. Chermol has served on the regional and state wide steering committees for the environmental group Clean Water Action. Prior to attending law school, he worked in a national leadership position for Clean Water Action as a grassroots organizer in various parts of the country.

Job Titles:

• Counsel

Dr. Kelly C. Connelly works in an Of Counsel capacity with Chermol & Fishman. For more than ten years, she served as an Assistant Regional Counsel in SSA's OGC, both in Philadelphia and Chicago. She has briefed hundreds of disability appeals in federal courts across the country. During her time at OGC, Professor Connelly received a lengthy list of awards for her outstanding quality of legal representation. She graduated summa cum laude from Adelphi University and from the Duke University School of Law with honors. Professor Connelly received her Ph.D. in English Literature from Temple University. Education J.D., Duke University School of Law, Durham, North Carolina Honors: With Honors Ph.D., Temple University

Job Titles:

• Disability Consultant

Judge Hatfield worked in the Social Security Administration from 1976 until his retirement in 2012, serving in such key positions as the Acting Chief Judge, Assistant Regional Chief Judge, Hearing Office Chief Judge for the Seven Fields Hearing Office, Hearing Office Chief Judge for the Pittsburgh Hearing Office, Administrative Appeals Judge with the Appeals Council, and Director of the Office of Civil Actions. He also served in key policy roles, including as an attorney for the Acquiescence Task Force, Director of the Division of Litigation Analysis, Director of Hearing Policy and Procedures, and Chair of the Commissioner-level Policy and Procedure Steering Committee. Judge Hatfield has written and taught extensively in his field. He was a faculty member for new Administrative Law Judge training since 1990, and was in charge of Supplemental Training for all new Administrative Law Judges. He was an Interactive Video Training lecturer since 1997 and has taught at the University of Pittsburgh Health Law Clinic and the Pennsylvania Bar Institute. He has testified before Congress regarding the Social Security disability program, and has been a frequent speaker on Social Security matters. Since his retirement, Judge Hatfield has worked as a consultant on Social Security matters. He has appeared as an expert witness, worked with the Social Security Advisory Board and the SSDI Solutions Project, and has given several CLE webinars on Social Security disability. He received his B.A with high distinction (Phi Beta Kappa) from Indiana University and his J.D. from George Mason University School of Law. Education 1973-1976 Indiana University Bloomington Bachelor Degree, History and Spanish 1980 -1984 George Mason University School of Law

Leanne Hernandez has spent over 15 years working exclusively in the Social Security disability field. She began her career as a disability adjudicator at the Department for Disability Determination Services in Kentucky where she spent over two years learning about this field as a government employee. She was the recipient of the Department for Disability Determination Services Commissioner's Meritorious Service Award in 2006 for her work with the homeless and Spanish-speaking populations. After leaving that position, she began her work as a disability representative in the private sector and has represented over 2000 individuals since at all administrative levels. In 2009, Ms. Hernandez passed the exam to become eligible for direct fee withholding under the updated Social Security law. Ms. Hernandez is a member of the National Association of Disability Representatives (NADR) and has been a presenter at several annual conferences, written multiple articles for the association's newsletter and served on the conference planning committee. She was the recipient of the 2011-2012 NADR Member of the Year Award. Outside of her professional interests, Ms. Hernandez enjoys her large family which includes three rescue cats. She is an avid travel enthusiast and acrylic artist as well. Education University of Louisville

Job Titles:

• Retired

Marty Pillion is a retired ALJ with the Social Security Administration (SSA), where he worked from 1995 until 2021. Prior to becoming an ALJ in 2009, he worked as an attorney advisor and senior attorney advisor. He was also the Hearing Office Chief Judge of the Johnstown Hearing Office from 2012 to 2017. In this capacity, he developed an outreach program to help representatives work effectively with the SSA hearing office. While at SSA, Judge Pillion was an instructor for decision writing training, new ALJ training, supplemental ALJ training, and judicial training. He was also involved in a number of special projects, including the Findings Integrated Templates (FIT), a Commissioner level initiative led by former Acting Chief Judge David Hatfield. FIT has been used to draft millions of ALJ decisions and dismissals and achieved the goal of significantly improving the quality of hearing level dispositions. He received his B.S. from Indiana University of Pennsylvania and is a summa cum laude graduate of New England School of Law.

Samuel Fishman, Esq. is a Founding and Lead Partner at the Disability Law Firm of Chermol & Fishman, LLC. He represents Social Security Disability and SSI claimants across the United States both at the administrative level and in federal court, as well as Personal Injury and Workers Compensation claimants. Samuel Fishman received his law degree at Temple University School of Law and is a Magna Cum Laude graduate of Brandeis University. He has been successfully representing clients for years as a Philadelphia Trial Lawyer and has won tens of millions of dollars for his clients. Mr. Fishman has developed a multi-lingual staff for the benefit of his clients, providing them access to the services they need in order to file successful claims.

Job Titles:

• Member of the National Association of Disability Representatives

Sandy Fambrough has spent the past 30 years working exclusively in the disability field. She started her career as an examiner for Disability Determinations Services in Louisiana where she spent 3 ½ years learning the process from the inside. She then entered the private sector and worked as an advocate for a company that assisted hospital patients in applying for benefits, including SSDI and SSI. Through other jobs, she learned how private disability claims are handled by the insurance industry and the interaction between those policies and Social Security disability benefits. For more than 25 years, she has handled Social Security disability claims at all administrative levels. In addition to being a representative, she has spent many years as a trainer, including developing and presenting training sessions to employees and the community. In July 2005, she was one of the first non-attorney representatives to become eligible for direct fee withholding under the updated Social Security law. In 2007, she was selected by SSA to help with the creation of what is now the Appointed Representative Services (ARS), and she continues to provide feedback to SSA on updates to ARS through regular meetings. Ms. Fambrough is a member of the National Association of Disability Representatives and served on their Board of Directors for 5 years. She has been a presenter at several annual conferences, assisted with the study classes for the annual SSA exam and served on numerous committees. In addition, she has assisted two Chermol & Fishman employees who both passed the SSA exam. Outside the scope of professional practice, for many years Ms. Fambrough worked with local animal rescue groups, including serving on her town's Animal Services Board. Since 2015, she has been involved with candidates running for the local town council and ran herself in 2016. She has been a deputy voter registrar in her county and also served as an election judge in state and national elections since 2012. In 2021, she was appointed to the town's Environmental Conservation Commission. Education Bachelor of Arts - Austin College, Sherman Texas

Teri C. Smith-Jones, Esq. has been an attorney at Chermol & Fishman since retiring from her position as an Assistant Regional Counsel for the SSA's OGC. As an attorney for SSA, she served as a Special Assistant United States Attorney and District Leader in the Eastern District of Pennsylvania. While at OGC, Ms. Smith-Jones litigated numerous disability appeals before a variety of federal courts, both at the district and circuit court levels. She provided advice and training to SSA personnel, including Administrative Law Judges. Ms. Smith-Jones was a co-author of the Pennsylvania Bar Institute's course materials for its continuing legal education presentations on Social Security Appeals in Federal Courts. During her tenure with SSA, Ms. Smith-Jones received numerous awards, including the General Counsel's Leadership Excellence Award, two General Counsel's Quality Service Awards, and a Deputy Commissioner's Citation. In addition to her experience at OGC, Ms. Smith-Jones worked as an attorney decision-writer at the Office of Hearings and Appeals for more than five years. Ms. Smith-Jones graduated from the University of Maryland and then attended the Columbus School of Law at the Catholic University of America. Ms. Smith-Jones is a United States Army veteran. She originally served as an enlisted soldier and non-commissioned officer. After graduating from law school, she accepted a Commission as an Army lawyer in the JAG Corps. She retired from the Army Reserve as a Lieutenant Colonel. Education J.D., Catholic University of America, Columbus School of Law, Washington, District of Columbia B.A., University of Maryland Experience Assistant Regional Counsel

Job Titles:

• Representative at Chermol

Trixy Lora is a disability representative at Chermol and Fishman. She has successfully assisted hundreds of individuals in obtaining their disability benefits at all administrative levels. Ms. Lora obtained her B.A. from La Salle University in Philadelphia, PA with a major in criminal justice. While in school, she volunteered at the Criminal Justice Center in the court for Emergency Protection From Abuse orders, helping victims obtain legal protection following an attack during Family Court's off hours. Ms. Lora passed the exam to become eligible for direct fee withholding under the updated Social Security law. She is a member of the National Association of Disability Representatives (NADR). In her spare time, she enjoys volunteering at The Block Gives Back, where she helps feed and provide some groceries to the homeless as well as others in the local community. Ms. Lora is fluent in Spanish and speaks conversational Italian. Education 2008 - 2011 Community College of Philadelphia Associate of Arts and Sciences (AAS), Criminal Justice 2011 - 2015 La Salle University

William B. Reeser, Esquire, has recently joined Chermol & Fishman, LLC after having retired from the Social Security Administration's Office of the General Counsel as a Supervisory Attorney in 2008. He has over a quarter-century of experience handling Social Security disability cases for disability applicants as well as for SSA, and as a Federal Law Clerk. Over the years, Mr. Reeser recruited, trained, and supervised many Social Security Administration attorneys and law students working for SSA. He also served as a District Leader, managing disability litigation in several different jurisdictions, including the Southern District of West Virginia, the Northern District of West Virginia, and the Eastern District of Pennsylvania. He has written more than 1500 briefs filed in Federal District Courts in Pennsylvania, Maryland, Delaware, Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia, as well as the Third and Fourth Circuit Courts of Appeals. He has presented oral argument in over two dozen disability cases before the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals and has argued numerous cases before the District Courts for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, the Western District of Pennsylvania, the District of Maryland, the Eastern District of Virginia, and the Southern District of West Virginia. He also served as a Special Assistant United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania for more than five years. Mr. Reeser actively participated in training SSA personnel and traveled throughout the region to train Administrative Law Judges, ALJ decision writers, and SSA managers. In addition to training on Social Security disability issues, Mr. Reeser presented training on ethics, personnel litigation, and civil rights issues. He has also been a trainer/presenter on several Continuing Legal Education courses on Social Security disability matters. He also served a detail to the Regional Chief Judge's Office where he helped train ALJ staff and also drafted ALJ decisions. Mr. Reeser has been honored with many awards over the years with SSA's Office of the General Counsel and was the first attorney to serve as a Senior SSA Regional Counsel at the GS-15 level in the Philadelphia Regional Office, prior to completing his federal service as a supervisor. After retiring from SSA in September 2008, Mr. Reeser and his wife have served as missionaries in Hua Hin, Thailand where they have opened a Youth Center for children from the ages of 10-19 and helped to found an international church. They also work with Karen refugees living in Thailand who have been persecuted by the government in their native country of Burma (Myanmar).