My wife is a dance teacher who teaches at two studios, and the main studio she teaches at is as a private contractor. When covid hit in March, that studio closed down and didn't reopen until August. During that time she collected PUA (the minimum amount + $600/week). When the studio reopened at the beginning of August, she stopped certifying and we received no more unemployment.

Cut to this afternoon, over a year later. We received a letter in the mail that says her claim has been reconsidered and that "the job separation that caused you to be unemployed occurred prior to the COVID-19 pandemic and was not COVID-19 related." It says we have less than 30 days to appeal.

Obviously we're nervous. We've never dealt with this system before and are nervous about screwing up the appeal and having to repay over $10,000. Any advice on how to deal with this? Should we seek out legal help, and if so what should we look out for?