Porrazzo v. Social Security Administration

Filing 19

ORDER granting 17 Motion for Attorney Fees and that defendant shall pay plaintiff's attorney's fees in the amount of $6545.00. Signed by Judge Lance M Africk. (lag)

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
EASTERN DISTRICT OF LOUISIANA

ANTONIO PORRAZZO, SR.

CIVIL ACTION

VERSUS

No. 13-6363

SOCIAL SECURITY ADMINISTRATION

SECTION I

ORDER
Before the Court is an unopposed motion 1 filed by plaintiff for an award of attorney’s
fees pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 2412. On November 7, 2014, the U.S. Magistrate Judge issued a
report and recommendation that the denial of plaintiff’s disability benefits be reversed. 2 This
Court adopted 3 that report and recommendation in its entirety and rendered judgment to that
effect on November 24, 2014. 4
Plaintiff’s counsel worked for a total of 37.4 hours and is requesting fees at a rate of
$175.00 per hour. 5 Defendant does not object to either the amount of time or the hourly rate. 6
See also, e.g., Dubois v. SSA, No. 13-2438, 2014 WL 6485639, at * (E.D. La. Nov. 18, 2014)
(Knowles, M.J.) (“After due consideration of prevailing market conditions and the healthy
community of social security practitioners in this area, the Court will . . . accept the hourly rate
of $175.00 per hour for this EAJA petition and those filed in the near future.”). Accordingly,

1

R. Doc. No. 17.
R. Doc. No. 14.
3
R. Doc. No. 15.
4
R. Doc. No. 16.
5
R. Doc. No. 17-2, at 2. The Court notes that plaintiff’s memorandum and defendant’s response
state that plaintiff’s counsel worked for 37.6 hours. R. Doc. No. 17-1, at 4; R. Doc. No. 18, at 1.
However, plaintiff’s separate itemization of time shows that only 37.4 hours are being claimed.
R. Doc. No. 17-2, at 2. The Court has been advised that this discrepancy was the result of a
typographical error, and that 37.4 hours is the correct number.
6
R. Doc. No. 18, at 1.
2

IT IS ORDERED that the motion is GRANTED and that defendant shall pay plaintiff’s
attorney’s fees in the amount of $6545.00.

New Orleans, Louisiana, January 30, 2015.

_______________________________________
LANCE M. AFRICK
UNITED STATES DISTRICT JUDGE

2