Joy HALE, Plaintiff-Appellant, v. Louis W. SULLIVAN, M.D., Secretary of Health and Human Services, Defendant-Appellee

CUDAHY, Circuit Judge.

This social security appeal revolves around one narrow procedural question— whether appellant Joy Hale submitted a timely request for limited review of her disability determination, thereby authorizing the Appeals Council to re-examine her entire case. Most disgruntled disability claimants maintain that they have initiated review in a timely manner. In a rather unusual reversal of position, however, Hale vehemently argues for exactly the opposite result.

In April 1986, Joy Hale filed an application for disability insurance benefits. Her claim was denied initially and on…