Parker v. Commissioner of Social Security

Filing 29

Final Judgment and Order Regarding Plaintiff's Social Security Complaint, signed by Magistrate Judge Erica P. Grosjean on 8/21/17. CASE CLOSED. (Marrujo, C)

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UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

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EASTERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA

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BETTY JEAN PARKER,
Plaintiff,

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v.

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Case No. 1:16-cv-00176-EPG
FINAL JUDGMENT AND ORDER
REGARDING PLAINTIFF’S SOCIAL
SECURITY COMPLAINT

COMMISSIONER OF SOCIAL
SECURITY,

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Defendant.
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This matter is before the Court on Plaintiff’s complaint for judicial review of an

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unfavorable decision of the Commissioner of the Social Security Administration regarding his

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applications for supplemental security income and disability insurance benefits. The parties have

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consented to entry of final judgment by the United States Magistrate Judge under the provisions

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of 28 U.S.C. § 636(c) with any appeal to the Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. (ECF Nos. 7,

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8.)

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At the hearing on August 21, 2017, the Court heard from the parties and, having reviewed

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the record, administrative transcript, the briefs of the parties, and the applicable law, finds as

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follows:

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For the reasons announced by the Court on the record at the conclusion of the parties’ oral

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argument on August 21, 2017, the Court finds that the decision of the Commissioner of Social

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Security should be reversed and the case should be remanded for further proceedings.
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The Administrative Law Judge (“ALJ”) erred by failing to consider the testimony of

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testimony of the claimant’s sister, Lara Robinson.

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the testimony of the claimant partly due to her “use of ‘medical’ marijuana against medical

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advice” and because “the claimant is not a consistent or reliable historian.” AR 23-24. Ms.

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Robinson submitted a detailed third-party function report. AR 250-257. This testimony could

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have assisted the ALJ in assessing the claimant’s credibility regarding her description of her

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limitations due to her impairments.

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In reaching his decision, the ALJ discredited

Because the Court cannot confidently conclude that no reasonable ALJ, when fully

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crediting the testimony, would have reached a different disability determination, the ALJ’s error

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was not harmless. See Stout v. Comm'r, Soc. Sec. Admin., 454 F.3d 1050, 1056 (9th Cir. 2006)

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(“[W]here the ALJ's error lies in a failure to properly discuss competent lay testimony favorable

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to the claimant, a reviewing court cannot consider the error harmless unless it can confidently

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conclude that no reasonable ALJ, when fully crediting the testimony, could have reached a

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different disability determination.”).

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On remand, the ALJ shall address the third-party function report of Lara Robinson and
consider whether the residual functioning capacity finding should be modified.
Accordingly, the Court GRANTS Plaintiff’s appeal from the administrative decision of

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the Commissioner of Social Security and the case is remanded to the Social Security

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Administration. The Clerk of the Court is DIRECTED to enter judgment in favor of Plaintiff and

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against Defendant Nancy A. Berryhill, Acting Commissioner of Social Security.

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IT IS SO ORDERED.
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Dated:

August 21, 2017

/s/
UNITED STATES MAGISTRATE JUDGE

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