Nash v. Kijakazi
- Proceeding
- district
- Area
- civil
- Panel
- Karen S. Crawford (author)
Analysis
The parties jointly moved for a voluntary remand to the Social Security Administration under sentence four of 42 U.S.C. § 405(g) following a denial of benefits. The court granted the motion, ordered the Commissioner to conduct a new hearing and evaluation, and directed the Clerk to enter final judgment in favor of the plaintiff.
| What the court decided | The model |
|---|---|
Grant of Joint Motion for Voluntary Remand“Having reviewed the Complaint and the Joint Motion, the Court GRANTS the Joint Motion.” | agree with court The court correctly granted the joint motion because the parties agreed to remand, which is a standard procedural mechanism in Social Security cases to allow the agency to correct errors without judicial adjudication of the merits. |
Entry of Final Judgment in Favor of Plaintiff“The Clerk of Court is DIRECTED to enter a final judgment in favor of plaintiff, and against defendant.” | agree with court Entering judgment in favor of the plaintiff upon a sentence four remand is the standard practice to allow the plaintiff to seek attorney's fees under the Equal Access to Justice Act (EAJA). |
The order itself: sound — The order is a standard procedural disposition of a joint motion. It correctly identifies the statutory basis for the remand and the subsequent entry of judgment to facilitate fee applications. The instructions to the agency are consistent with standard Social Security remand practices.
Opinion
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT 9 SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA 10 11 CHOCOLATE N., Case No.: 22-cv-1026-KSC 12 Plaintiff, Order on Joint Motion For Voluntary 13 v. Remand to Agency Pursuant to Sentence Four of 42 U.S.C. § 405(g) 14 KILOLO KIJAKAZI, and Entry of Judgment [Doc. No. 37] 15 Defendant. 16 17 Plaintiff filed this action challenging the final decision of the Commissioner of 18 Social Security denying plaintiff’s claim for benefits. Doc. No. 1. The parties jointly moved 19 for remand under sentence for of 42 U.S.C. § 405(g). Doc No. 37 (the “Joint Motion”). 20 Having reviewed the Complaint and the Joint Motion, the Court GRANTS the Joint 21 Motion. Upon remand, the Commissioner will offer the claimant the opportunity of a 22 hearing; offer the claimant an opportunity to submit additional evidence; reevaluate the 23 opinions of record, as necessary, consistent with 20 C.F.R. § 416.927; if necessary, obtain 24 new medical expert testimony; and proceed with the sequential evaluation, as warranted. 25 Plaintiff shall receive a new decision by the Commissoner. 26 The Clerk of Court is DIRECTED to enter a final judgment in favor of plaintiff, 27 and against defendant. The entry of judgment will begin the running of the thirty-day period 28 for which plaintiff, as the prevailing party, may make a timely application for attorneys’ 1 under the Equal Access to Justice Act. See 28 U.S.C. § 2412(d)(1)(B); Akopyan vy. 2 || Barnhart, 296 F.3d 852, 854 (9th Cir. 2002). 3 IT IS SO ORDERED. 4 || Dated: September 28, 2023 JE. Le 5 Mil Y Sa 6 Hori. Karen 8S. Crawford , United States Magistrate Judge 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28