The adjudicator and any other employee must disqualify himself or herself from acting
on (i.e., interviewing, developing, adjudicating claims, or making systems inputs)
any official matter that involves another SSA employee working in the same office
or any former employee that previously worked for the office and is known by the adjudicator.
The employee must inform the appropriate supervisor about any situation that involves
another SSA employee. The supervisor will assess the situation and take the necessary
actions (e.g., direct someone else to review it before adjudication or assign the
claim to another FO that has no direct connection with the claimant) at the discretion
of local management.