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Hello, newbie poster here. I've gotten some very good information from this site, so thought I'd put two cents back in the pot.

On the advice of a friend, I applied for SSDI after receiving a 100% P&T rating (she actually advised me to do it much sooner and I probably should have, but I was concerned with wading through the VA's FIVE-YEAR determination process). I learned a couple of things along the way.

1) The SSDI forms are pretty intimidating, but you don't have to fill them out at your kitchen table and rely on your memory and personal records.  Pick up the forms at your local SS office, take them home and do the best you can.  Then you make an appointment for application, and the SS rep will step you through it.  My guy looked about 12 years old, but was competent, respectful, informative and friendly.  Obviously, SS doesn't charge you for this service -- other than a taxing delay in their waiting room, of course.

2) You don't have to reproduce your entire VA record for SS, which was a big relief to me.  Mine ran ~750 pages and would have cost >$100 just to copy off.  SS can access VA records directly, as long as you fill out your info release.  Your SS rep (i.e. the person with whom you go through the application process) will make sure this happens.

3)  I got paranoid and starting calling around to attorneys' offices. The best answer I got was from a fairly local guy, who told me NOT to hire an attorney until I'd gotten a thumbs-down decision, but that it might be a very good idea to talk to a law office in that event (he also gave me enough other good guidance that he'll be my go-to if I get turned down, which is probable).  His logic was based on the way attorneys get paid for SSDI claims, which is consistent and governed by law.  They get NOTHING if you lose, and a fee equivalent to 25 percent of your backpay (up to a maximum cap that I don't currently recall -- about 6,000 bucks) if and only if they win your case for you. Their compensation is governed by a specific federal law.

Why didn't he take my case right away? Because if he had, he would have been entitled BY LAW to his 25%, even though I'd already put forward the claim. So there's your general approach: try an application on your own.  If that flies, you'll get 100% of your back pay. If you get turned down, hiring an attorney is a darned fine idea -- you'll get 75% of your back pay, which you are MUCH MORE LIKELY TO GET, and there's no up front cost or retainer to deal with, ever.

A couple of things to keep in mind:  a VA rating decision -- even 100% -- doesn't guarantee you a favorable SSDI decision. There's no "slam dunk"; their criteria are not aligned.

About 65 percent of all SSDI claims are turned down, and the percentage goes even higher for SSDI appeals without an attorney. However (and this is kinda important, here) the formula is inverted for SSDI appeals with an attorney. About two-thirds of those are approved for entitlement.

I wouldn't presume to tell anyone else how to roll, but if I get turned down on my first go-around -- as most applicants do -- I'll be hiring an attorney for my appeal.

Hope some of this is helpful.  Good luck to you.