Finley v. Commissioner of Social Security
Filing
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ORDER GRANTING 22 Motion for Attorney Fees Pursuant to 42 U.S.C. § 406(b), signed by Magistrate Judge Jennifer L. Thurston on 4/17/2018. (Hall, S)
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UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
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EASTERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA
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WILLIAM JOSEPH FINLEY,
Plaintiff,
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v.
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COMISSIONER OF SOCIAL SECURITY,
Defendant.
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Case No.: 1:16-cv-0272- JLT
ORDER GRANTING COUNSEL’S MOTION
FOR ATTORNEY FEES PURSUANT TO
42 U.S.C. § 406(b)
(Doc. 22)
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Josephine Gerrard, counsel for Plaintiff William Joseph Finley, seeks an award of attorney fees
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pursuant to 42 U.S.C. § 406(b). (Doc. 22) Neither Plaintiff nor Defendant filed a response to the
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motion. For the following reasons, the motion for attorney fees is GRANTED.
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I.
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Relevant Background
Plaintiff entered into a contingent fee agreement with Ms. Gerrard on February 22, 2016, which
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provided that if the federal court litigation resulted in past-due benefits paid to Plaintiff, his “attorney
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has the right under [the] contract to ask the court to award as much as 25% of [the] past-due benefits.”
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(Doc. 22-2 at 1)
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On February 26, 2016, Plaintiff filed a complaint for review of the administrative decision
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denying his Social Security benefits. (Doc. 17) On December 2, 2016, the parties filed a stipulation
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for the matter to be remanded for further proceedings. (Doc. 18) Pursuant to the terms of the
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stipulation, the Court remanded the action under sentence four of 42 U.S.C. § 405(g) and entered
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judgment in favor of Plaintiff. (Docs. 18, 19) Following the entry of judgment, the Court awarded
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$6,000.00 in attorney fees pursuant to the Equal Access to Justice Act. (Doc. 21)
On December 20, 2017 an administrative law judge “issued a favorable decision…, finding the
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plaintiff disabled as of April 28, 2009.” (Doc. 22 at 2) The Commissioner concluded Plaintiff was
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entitled to past due benefits totaling $107,403.00, out of which the Commissioner withheld 25% — in
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the amount of $26,870.75 — for payment of attorney’s fees. (Doc. 22 at 2; Doc. 22-1 at 1)
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II.
An attorney may seek an award of fees for representation of a Social Security claimant who is
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Attorney Fees under § 406(b)
awarded benefits:
Whenever a court renders a judgment favorable to a claimant under [42 USC § 401, et
seq] who was represented before the court by an attorney, the court may determine and
allow as part of its judgment a reasonable fee for such representation, not in excess of
25 percent of the total of the past-due benefits to which the claimant is entitled by
reason of such judgment. . . .
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42 U.S.C. § 406(b)(1)(A); see also Gisbrecht v. Barnhart, 535 U.S. 789, 794 (2002) (Section 406(b)
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controls fees awarded for representation of Social Security claimants). A contingency fee agreement
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is unenforceable if it provides for fees exceeding twenty-five percent of past-due benefits. Id. at 807.
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III.
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Discussion and Analysis
District courts “have been deferential to the terms of contingency fee contracts § 406(b) cases.”
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Hern v. Barnhart, 262 F.Supp.2d 1033, 1037 (N.D. Cal. 2003). However, the Court must review
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contingent-fee arrangements “as an independent check, to assure that they yield reasonable results in
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particular cases.” Gisbrecht, 535 U.S. at 807. In doing so, the Court should consider “the character of
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the representation and the results the representative achieved.” Id. at 808. In addition, the Court
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should consider whether the attorney performed in a substandard manner or engaged in dilatory
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conduct or excessive delays, and whether the fees are “excessively large in relation to the benefits
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received.” Crawford v. Astrue, 586 F.3d 1142, 1149 (9th Cir. 2009) (en banc).
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In this case, Plaintiff entered into the contingent fee agreement in which he agreed to pay
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twenty-five percent of any awarded retroactive benefits. Ms. Gerrard accepted the risk of loss in the
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representation when representing Plaintiff before the District Court. As a result of counsel’s work
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before the court and the agency, the matter was remanded for further proceedings before an
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administrative law judge, who issued a fully favorable decision and awarded Plaintiff benefits. For
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this, Ms. Gerrard requested a fee of $20,000.00 “as her fee for work before the agency.” (Doc. 22 at 2-
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3; Doc. 22-5 at 1) She now “seeks a fee authorization in the amount of $4,875.50” pursuant to the
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Social Security Act. (Doc. 22 at 6, ¶11)
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Significantly, there is no indication Ms. Gerrard performed in a substandard manner or
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engaged in severe dilatory conduct to the extent that a reduction in fees is warranted. To the contrary,
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Plaintiff was able to secure a fully favorable decision following the remand for further proceedings,
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including an award of past-due benefits. Accordingly, the Court finds the fees sought by Ms. Gerrard
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are reasonable in light the results achieved in this action, and the amount does not exceed twenty-five
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percent maximum permitted under 42 U.S.C. §406(b).
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IV.
Conclusion and Order
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Based upon the foregoing, the Court ORDERS:
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is GRANTED; and
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The motion for attorney fees pursuant to 24 U.S.C. §406(b) in the amount of $4,875.50
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The Commissioner shall pay the amount directly to Counsel, Josephine Gerrard.
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IT IS SO ORDERED.
Dated:
April 17, 2018
/s/ Jennifer L. Thurston
UNITED STATES MAGISTRATE JUDGE
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