Maria Laura Sigaud

Morgan & Weisbrod LLP
11551 Forest Central Drive Suite 300 Dallas, TX 75243
214-373-3761
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I am licensed in the U.S. Supreme Court, the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals, and all four federal district courts of Texas. In 2010, I became board-certified in Social Security disability law by the National Board of Legal Specialty Certification – an ABA-accredited organization.

For more than sixteen years, I have dedicated my practice to Social Security disability cases. I served as President of [FOSSCR] in 2017-2018 and organized and MC’d a continuing legal education seminar featuring guest speakers from the Social Security Advisory Board, SSA’s Office of General Counsel, SSA’s Regional Chief, NOSSCR, a panel of Social Security disability hearing vocational experts, and many more. This seminar included attorneys from Texas, Louisiana, and Mississippi. In 2010-2011, I served as President of [DASSCA] and Vice President in 2014-2015, and am currently serving as Treasurer. I have presented at [NOSSCR] on many occasions over the years to teach about various disability advocacy issues. For the last six years, I have met meet with multiple U.S. Congressman and Senators to discuss the vitality of the Social Security Disability program and to advocate for the program. In March, 2010, I was a presenter at a continuing legal education conference for the Fifth Circuit Organization of Social Security Claimants Representatives. I am a sustaining member of NOSSCR, and a member of the American Bar Association. I am licensed to practice law in the State of Texas and I am also licensed in all four federal district courts of Texas.

As an undergraduate of Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi, I studied English literature and found out I had a knack for research and writing. I decided to apply those skills to the study of law and in 1999 I moved to Houston to attend law school at South Texas College of Law. For the next three years, I studied full-time and clerked for a civil litigation firm handling cases in multiple areas of the law such as labor/employment, personal injury, and toxic torts. I first became exposed to Social Security disability cases there. In 2003, I began my career as a Social Security disability lawyer. Initially, I thought I would eventually move on to immigration law, given my background as an immigrant. But I quickly found out that helping people with disabilities was not only rewarding on a professional level, but on a personal one as well.

Languages:

Spanish
English

Years Of Experience:

Over 17 Years

Education:

South Texas College of Law, Houston, Texas, 2002 J.D.
Texas A&M University, Corpus Christi, TX, 1996 B.A.

Professional Honors & Activities:

Chosen as a Super Lawyers “Rising Stars”, 2012-2013
Fifth Circuit Organization of Social Security Claimants Representatives
Member
Dallas Area Social Security Claimants’ Attorneys (DASSCA)
2011 President
Dallas Area Social Security Claimants’ Attorneys (DASSCA)
2010 Vice President
National Organization of Social Security Claimants’ Representatives (NOSSCR)
Member
Austin Community College Classified Employees Association, 1997 – 1999
Parliamentarian, Secretary
Texas State Bar Standing Committee on Disability Issues, 2009 – Present
Appointed Member
Hispanic Law Students Association (Vice President 2001-2002)

Presentations & Speeches:

2015 Washington D.C. National Organization of Social Security Claimants Representatives – co-presenter with Mike Kelly “Disrupting the Path to Denial.”
2016 Fifth Circuit Organization of Social Security Claimants Representatives – co-presenter with Mike Kelly “Disrupting the Path to Denial”
Opinion Published on Expert Witnesses Appearing by Telephone at Hearings, NOSSCR Newsletter, October 2013.
Seminar Presentations in Social Security Disability Law: Four Examples of Vocational Expert Cross-Examination., Social Security Disability Law Forum, New York, NY June 8, 2007