Many federal employees reach a point where a medical condition makes it impossible to continue performing the essential duties of their position. When this happens, OPM Disability Retirement becomes a lifeline that protects your income, benefits, health insurance, and long-term security. But the process is notoriously confusing, technical, and stacked against you.

This is where an experienced OPM disability retirement lawyer becomes indispensable.
From medical documentation to SF-3112 forms, from accommodation disputes to MSPB appeals, the right lawyer ensures your case is constructed correctly from day one — and gives you a fighting chance when denials arrive.

This is the most comprehensive guide available on OPM Disability Retirement. It reflects insider knowledge, federal-sector experience, and NSLF’s mission-driven approach.

National Security Law Firm: It’s Our Turn to Fight for You.

Who Is Eligible for OPM Disability Retirement

To qualify, OPM requires you to satisfy six legal conditions:

  1. You must be a federal employee covered under FERS or CSRS

  2. You must have 18 months of creditable service (FERS) or 5 years (CSRS)

  3. You must have a medical condition that interferes with essential duties

  4. The condition must be expected to last at least one year

  5. The agency cannot provide effective reasonable accommodation

  6. No reassignment is available at your grade and locality

An OPM disability retirement lawyer ensures these elements are documented clearly and supported with the right evidence.

Understanding Essential Job Duties

You do not need to prove you cannot work anywhere.
You must prove you cannot perform the essential functions of your federal job because of your medical limitations.

Essential duties may include:

  • Firearm carrying requirements

  • Extensive travel

  • High concentration or analytical tasks

  • Physical demands such as standing, bending, lifting, or walking

  • Shift work or rotating schedules

  • Confrontational or emergency duties

  • Operating specialized equipment

An OPM disability retirement lawyer helps establish the link between essential duties and your medical limitations — the core of a winning claim.

Medical Evidence: The Heart of Every Disability Retirement Case

OPM denies most applications because the medical documentation is incomplete, unclear, or not linked to job duties.

Your doctor’s statement must:

  • Provide a specific diagnosis

  • Explain your functional limitations

  • Tie limitations to the essential duties in your job description

  • State that your condition is expected to last at least one year

  • Summarize treatment, prognosis, and past interventions

  • Explicitly support your application

A lawyer for OPM disability retirement prepares your physician to write this correctly — and prevents vague or harmful statements that lead to denials.

The SF-3112 Package: What OPM Actually Reviews

The OPM Disability Retirement package includes five critical components:

SF-3112A – Your Personal Statement

This must contain a:

  • Clear narrative

  • Functional limitation description

  • Explanation of how the condition affects job duties

  • Timeline of worsening symptoms

SF-3112B – Supervisor Statement

Supervisors often make mistakes, such as:

  • Misidentifying essential functions

  • Downplaying limitations

  • Claiming accommodations were available

SF-3112C – Physician’s Statement

This must match your statement and describe lasting limitations.

SF-3112D – Agency Certification

The agency must certify that:

  • RA efforts failed

  • No reassignment exists

SF-3112E – Supporting Documentation

This includes:

  • Medical records

  • Workers’ comp files

  • Evaluations

  • FMLA documentation

An OPM disability retirement lawyer ensures consistency across all forms and prevents contradictions — something OPM looks for immediately.

Why Accommodation and Reassignment Matter for Your Case

OPM will not approve your claim unless the agency proves:

  1. It attempted to reasonably accommodate you

  2. It conducted a reassignment search

Federal agencies often fail here due to:

  • Ignoring RA requests

  • Offering sham accommodations

  • Refusing telework modifications

  • Skipping reassignment entirely

When mistakes happen, an OPM disability retirement lawyer uses them to strengthen your claim, especially in reconsideration and MSPB appeals.

The Most Common Reasons OPM Denies Disability Retirement

Medical evidence is too vague

Statements like “the patient is struggling” or “unable to work at times” are fatal.

Contradictory documentation

If your doctor, supervisor, and your own statement do not match, OPM denies.

Doctor fails to certify the one-year duration

This is mandatory.

Agency claims you can be accommodated

Even when accommodations are unrealistic.

Light duty confuses the case

Light duty does not equal essential duties.

Failure to explain how the condition worsened

OPM expects a coherent medical timeline.

An OPM disability retirement lawyer identifies and fixes these issues before you submit — or on reconsideration if already denied.

Reconsideration: Your Second Chance to Win

If OPM denies your application, you have 30 days to request reconsideration.

This stage allows:

  • Additional medical records

  • Stronger physician statements

  • Clarification of duties

  • Correction of agency errors

  • New diagnoses

  • A more persuasive personal narrative

An experienced OPM disability retirement lawyer will rebuild the entire package to address every weakness in the initial denial.

MSPB Appeals: When OPM Still Gets It Wrong

If OPM denies your reconsideration, you can appeal to the Merit Systems Protection Board (MSPB).

MSPB is often where federal employees win because:

  • Judges analyze medical evidence independently

  • OPM must justify improper denials

  • Discovery allows us to uncover errors

  • Expert testimony is permitted

  • Cross-examination reveals flaws in OPM’s reasoning

An OPM disability retirement lawyer will present:

  • Medical experts

  • Functional capacity documentation

  • Job analyses

  • Accommodation failure evidence

  • A full evidentiary record

Most MSPB disability retirement wins come from appeals — not from OPM approvals.

Life After Approval: What Disability Retirement Provides

If approved, you receive:

  • A monthly disability annuity

  • Continued FEHB health insurance

  • Continued FEGLI life insurance (in many cases)

  • Retirement credit

  • COLAs

  • Ability to work in the private sector up to 80 percent of previous salary

  • SSDI integration if approved

An OPM disability retirement lawyer can also help protect your benefits if OPM later requests periodic medical updates.

Insider Tips to Strengthen Your Case

Do not rely on supervisors

They often do not understand OPM standards.

Do not let HR coach your doctor

Their goals are not aligned with yours.

Be detailed

General statements lose cases.

Submit consistent narratives

OPM denies anything that appears contradictory.

Avoid rushed filings

Fast filings usually mean weak filings.

Hire a lawyer before reconsideration

This is the last chance to fix errors before MSPB.

Why Choose NSLF as Your OPM Disability Retirement Lawyer

Veteran-founded. Mission-driven. Federal insiders.
This is what sets NSLF apart.

We offer:

  • Former federal agency lawyers

  • Former JAG officers

  • Deep MSPB litigation experience

  • Expertise in accommodation and reassignment law

  • Strategic preparation for medical evidence

  • Attorney Review Board case analysis

  • Nationwide representation

  • 4.9-star Google rating

We know how OPM thinks.
We know how agencies fail.
We know how MSPB evaluates medical evidence.
And we fight with the precision of an elite unit.

Federal Employment Defense Resource Hub

Explore NSLF’s full library:

NSLF’s Federal Employment Law Hub

Includes guides on:

  • Disability discrimination

  • Medical removal

  • Reasonable accommodation

  • MSPB defense

  • EEO complaints

  • Whistleblower retaliation

  • Security clearance strategy

Ready to Take the Next Step?

If you are:

  • Debilitated by a medical condition

  • Struggling to perform essential duties

  • Being denied accommodation

  • Considering OPM Disability Retirement

  • Already denied by OPM

  • Facing a proposed removal

  • Worried about losing income or benefits

You need an experienced OPM disability retirement lawyer to protect your future.

Book a Free Consultation

We will:

  • Evaluate your eligibility

  • Strengthen your medical documentation

  • Guide your doctor

  • Build a complete SF-3112 package

  • Handle reconsideration

  • Prepare and litigate your MSPB appeal

  • Safeguard your benefits, income, and career stability

You gave your career to federal service.
Now let us fight to protect your future.

National Security Law Firm: It’s Our Turn to Fight for You.