
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
Bar Admissions:
- Texas, 2003
- U.S. District Court Eastern District of Texas, 2004
- U.S. District Court Southern District of Texas, 2004
- U.S. District Court Northern District of Texas, 2008
- U.S. District Court Western District of Texas, 2009
- United States Supreme Court, Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals, 2015