Jones v. Commissioner of Social Security

Filing 17

ORDER granting in part 15 Second Motion for Stay of Proceedings. The Court extends the deadline for Defendant to file a certified transcript and answer to November 13, 2020. Signed by Magistrate Judge Nicholas P. Mizell on 10/14/2020. (brh)

Case 5:20-cv-00247-GKS-NPM Document 17 Filed 10/14/20 Page 1 of 2 PageID 59

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
MIDDLE DISTRICT OF FLORIDA
OCALA DIVISION

STEPHEN P. JONES,
Plaintiff,
v.

Case No. 5:20-cv-247-Oc-18NPM

COMMISSIONER OF SOCIAL
SECURITY
Defendant.
ORDER
Before the Court are Defendant’s Second Motion for Stay of Proceedings
(Doc. 15) and response (Doc. 16). In this Social Security case, Defendant requests
the Court stay the proceedings for sixty days or until such time as the Agency
regains capacity to produce a certified transcript of the administrative record
necessary to draft an answer and adjudicate the case. (Id., p. 1). Due to the current
situation in this country, Defendant represents the Agency has transitioned to a
telework environment, and encountered difficulties that impact the operations of
the Social Security Administration’s Office of Appellate Operations. (Id., pp. 1-3).
Plaintiff argues the Commissioner has already received a sixty-day extension
of time and any additional delay will cause harm to Plaintiff. (Doc. 16, p. 2).
Plaintiff opposed the request for a sixty-day stay, but is agreeable to an extension
of time of thirty days. (Doc. 16, p. 2).

Case 5:20-cv-00247-GKS-NPM Document 17 Filed 10/14/20 Page 2 of 2 PageID 60

A court has broad discretion whether to stay a proceeding “as an incident to
its power to control its own docket.” Clinton v. Jones, 520 U.S. 681, 706-707
(1997). The court must weigh the benefits of the stay against any harms of delay.
Id. at 707. Here, the Commissioner has provided good cause to extend the deadline
to file the certified transcript and answer. But the Court finds a second sixty-day
extension would cause undue delay. The Court will extend the deadline to file the
certified transcript and answer by thirty days.
Accordingly, it is ORDERED that the (Opposed) Second Motion for Stay of
Proceedings (Doc. 15) is GRANTED in part. The Court extends the deadline for
Defendant to file a certified transcript and answer to November 13, 2020.
DONE and ORDERED in Fort Myers, Florida on October 14, 2020.

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