Carlton D. v. Frank Bisignano, Commissioner of Social Security
- Proceeding
- district
- Area
- civil
- Panel
- Janis L. Sammartino (author)
Analysis
The court reviewed a Magistrate Judge's Report and Recommendation (R&R) advising the reversal of a Social Security Commissioner's decision denying disability benefits, in the absence of any party objections. The court adopted the R&R, reversed the Commissioner's decision, and remanded the case for further administrative proceedings.
| What the court decided | Standard it applied | The model |
|---|---|---|
Adoption of the Magistrate Judge's Report and Recommendation“the Court ADOPTS Judge Pettit’s R&R in its entirety.” | de novo | agree with court The court correctly applied the standard of review for an unobjected R&R. Under 28 U.S.C. § 636(b)(1) and Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 72(b), when no party files timely objections, the district court is not required to conduct a de novo review but must instead ensure there is no 'clear error on the face of the record.' The court explicitly stated it reviewed for clear error and found none, which is the legally appropriate standard in this procedural posture. The citation to *United States v. Raddatz* and *United States v. Remsing* supports the general framework of magistrate review, while the citation to the Advisory Committee Note and *Campbell v. U.S. Dist. Court* correctly identifies the 'clear error' standard for unobjected recommendations. |
Reversal of the Commissioner's decision and Remand“The Court (1) APPROVES and ADOPTS the R&R (ECF 13); (2) REVERSES the Commissioner’s decision; and (3) REMANDS the matter for further administrative proceedings consistent with the R&R.” | de novo | agree with court The court adopted the R&R's substantive recommendation to reverse and remand. Because the R&R was adopted in its entirety, the district court's decision to reverse and remand is a direct consequence of that adoption. The order does not independently analyze the merits of the Social Security claim (e.g., substantial evidence, step-five analysis) but relies on the Magistrate Judge's findings. Since the R&R is incorporated by reference and no clear error was found, the adoption of the reversal and remand is procedurally sound. |
The order itself: sound — The order is procedurally sound. It correctly identifies the applicable legal standard for reviewing a magistrate judge's R&R in the absence of objections (clear error review). It cites the correct statutory and case law authorities (*Raddatz*, *Remsing*, *Campbell*) to support this standard. The court explicitly states it reviewed the R&R for clear error and found none, which is the required judicial action under the cited authorities. The adoption of the R&R and the subsequent reversal/remand follow logically from that finding. There are no gaps in the reasoning regarding the procedural posture, and the order is consistent with Ninth Circuit precedent.
Opinion
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT 9 SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA 10 11 CARLTON D.,1 Case No.: 24-CV-1839 JLS (MMP)
12 Plaintiff, ORDER ADOPTING REPORT AND 13 v. RECOMMENDATION 14 (ECF No. 13) 15 FRANK BISIGNANO, Commissioner of Social Security,2 16 Defendant. 17 18 Presently before the Court is Magistrate Judge Michelle M. Pettit’s Report and 19 Recommendation (“R&R,” ECF No. 13) advising the Court to reverse the Commissioner 20 of Social Security’s decision denying Plaintiff Carlton D.’s application for disability 21 insurance benefits and remand the matter for further administrative proceedings in 22 connection with Plaintiff’s Social Security Appeal pursuant to 42 U.S.C. § 405(g). R&R 23 at 25; see also ECF No. 1. Plaintiff filed an opening Brief (ECF No. 9), to which Defendant 24 filed a Responsive Brief (ECF No. 10). Plaintiff also filed a Reply (ECF No. 11). No Party 25 26 1 In accordance with Civil Local Rule 7.1(e)(6)(b), the Court refers to all non-government parties by using 27 their first name and last initial. 2 Frank Bisignano is the current Commissioner of Social Security and is automatically substituted as the 28 1 filed objections to the R&R. See generally Docket. Having considered Judge Pettit’s 2 R&R, the pleadings and all supporting documents, and the law, the Court ADOPTS Judge 3 Pettit’s R&R in its entirety. 4 BACKGROUND 5 Judge Pettit’s R&R contains an accurate recitation of the relevant background and 6 evidence. See R&R at 2–3. This Order incorporates by reference the background as set 7 forth therein. 8 LEGAL STANDARD 9 Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 72(b) and 28 U.S.C. § 636(b)(1) set forth a district 10 court’s duties in connection with a magistrate judge’s R&R. The district court must “make 11 a de novo determination of those portions of the report or specified proposed findings or 12 recommendations to which objection is made,” and “may accept, reject, or modify, in 13 whole or in part, the findings or recommendations made by the magistrate judge.” 28 14 U.S.C. § 636(b)(1); see also United States v. Raddatz, 447 U.S. 667, 673–76 (1980); United 15 States v. Remsing, 874 F.2d 614, 617 (9th Cir. 1989). However, in the absence of timely 16 objection, the Court “need only satisfy itself that there is no clear error on the face of the 17 record in order to accept the recommendation.” Fed. R. Civ. P. 72 advisory committee’s 18 note (citing Campbell v. U.S. Dist. Court, 501 F.2d 196, 206 (9th Cir. 1974)). 19 ANALYSIS 20 No Party objects to the R&R. See generally Docket. The Court therefore reviews 21 the R&R for clear error and finds none. Accordingly, the Court ADOPTS the R&R in its 22 entirety. 23 / / / 24 / / / 25 / / / 26 / / / 27 / / / 28 / / / I CONCLUSION 2 In light of the foregoing, the Court (1) APPROVES and ADOPTS the R&R (ECF 3 13); (2) REVERSES the Commissioner’s decision; and (3) REMANDS the matter 4 ||for further administrative proceedings consistent with the R&R. As this concludes the 5 || litigation in this matter, the Clerk of the Court SHALL CLOSE the file. 6 IT IS SO ORDERED. 7 ||Dated: February 19, 2026 . tt 8 ja Janis L. Sammartino 9 United States District Judge 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28