St Onge v. Commissioner of Social Security

Filing 40

ORDER adopting 36 Report and Recommendations. This action is REMANDED to the Commissioner. The Clerk is DIRECTED to administratively close the case, but the Court shall retain jurisdiction. If the outcome of the de novo hearing is not favorabl e to Plaintiff, he may seek judicial review by reinstating this case rather than filing a new complaint. If the outcome is fully favorable to Plaintiff, the parties shall file a motion to dismiss. The Commissioner SHALL provide the Court with status reports every three months regarding the remand process. Signed by Judge John L. Badalamenti on 11/19/2020. (SMG)

Case 2:19-cv-00084-JLB-NPM Document 40 Filed 11/19/20 Page 1 of 2 PageID 3266

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
MIDDLE DISTRICT OF FLORIDA
FORT MYERS DIVISION
ALAN M. ST. ONGE, o/b/o MICHAEL
NORMAN ST. ONGE (deceased),
Plaintiff,
v.

Case No. 2:19-cv-00084-JLB-NPM

COMMISIONER OF SOCIAL SECURITY,
Defendant.

/
ORD ER

The Magistrate Judge filed a Report and Recommendation in this matter on
October 30, 2020, recommending the Commissioner’s decision be remanded under
sentence six of 42 U.S.C. § 405(g) for consideration of medical records regarding
Michael Norman St. Onge’s heart condition dated after December 14, 2018. 1 (Doc.
36.) No objections have been filed. A district judge may accept, reject or modify the
magistrate judge’s report and recommendation. 28 U.S.C. § 636(b)(1). In the
absence of objections, a district judge is not required to review the factual findings
in the report de novo, but legal conclusions are reviewed de novo even without an
objection. Id.; Cooper-Houston v. Southern Ry. Co., 37 F.3d 603, 604 (11th Cir.
1994); Garvey v. Vaughn, 993 F.2d 776, 779 n.9 (11th Cir. 1993).

To the extent this Court’s prior order (Doc. 37) or the Report and
Recommendation suggested reversal or affirmance was the proper remedy, that is
inaccurate. Under a sentence-six remand, no determination on the merits is made
until after post-remand agency proceedings are completed. See Davis v. Comm'r,
No. 309-cv-818-J-MCR, 2010 WL 750346, at *1 (M.D. Fla. Mar. 4, 2010).
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Case 2:19-cv-00084-JLB-NPM Document 40 Filed 11/19/20 Page 2 of 2 PageID 3267

After an independent review of the record—and noting that no objections
have been filed—the Court agrees with the findings of fact and conclusions of law in
the Report and Recommendation. The Court further notes that any issues
regarding the appointment of the presiding administrative law judge (“ALJ”) under
the Appointments Clause of the U.S. Constitution may potentially be rectified
during the proceedings on remand.
Accordingly, it is ORDERED:
1.

The Report and Recommendation (Doc. 36) is ADOPTED.

2.

This action is REMANDED to the Commissioner, pursuant to sentence
six of 42 U.S.C. § 405(g), for the Commissioner to conduct a de novo
hearing before an ALJ. The Clerk is DIRECTED to administratively
close the case, but the Court shall retain jurisdiction.

3.

If the outcome of the de novo hearing is not favorable to Plaintiff, he
may seek judicial review by reinstating this case rather than filing a
new complaint. If the outcome is fully favorable to Plaintiff, the
parties shall file a motion to dismiss.

4.

The Commissioner SHALL provide the Court with status reports every
three months regarding the remand process.

ORDERED in Fort Myers, Florida, on November 19, 2020.

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