Cummings v. Colvin

Filing 28

MEMORANDUM AND ORDER. (see order for details) IT IS HEREBY ORDERED that plaintiffs Motion for Attorney's Fees under the Equal Access to Justice Act [# 25 ] is GRANTED and plaintiff is awarded attorney's fees in the amount of $4,721. 75. IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that the Social Security Administration shall pay attorney's fees in the amount of $4,721.75, paid directly to plaintiff's attorney, Traci L. Severs, Dennis W. Fox and Associates, subject to any pre-existing d ebt that the plaintiff owes to the United States. The payment shall be mailed to plaintiff's attorney, Traci L. Severs, Dennis W. Fox and Associates, 211 N. Broadway, Suite 2400, St. Louis, MO 63102. Signed by District Judge Catherine D. Perry on 06/12/2014. (CBL)

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
EASTERN DISTRICT OF MISSOURI
EASTERN DIVISION
MARILYN CUMMINGS,

)
)
Plaintiff,
)
)
vs.
)
)
CAROLYN W. COLVIN,
)
Acting Commissioner of Social Security )
)
Defendant.
)

Case No. 4:13CV1845 CDP

MEMORANDUM AND ORDER
This matter is before the Court on Marilyn Cummings’s Application for
Attorney’s Fees under the Equal Access to Justice Act (EAJA), 28 U.S.C. § 2412.
This Court granted the government’s motion to reverse and remand the case
to the Commissioner for further proceedings pursuant to sentence four of 42 U.S.C.
§ 405(g). ECF Doc. 23. Plaintiff now seeks an award of attorney’s fees in the
amount of $4,721.75, representing 25 hours of attorney work at $188.87 per hour
and requests that the attorney’s fees be paid directly to plaintiff’s
attorneys.1 Defendant has no objection to payment of the attorney’s fees in the
requested amount of $4,721.75. However, defendant requests that the Court enter

1

This rate is based upon a cost-of-living adjustment to the statutory rate of $125 per hour. See
28 U.S.C. § 2412(d)(2)(A); United States Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics,
Consumer Price Index Inflation Calculator, available at
http://www.bls.gov/data/inflation_calculator.htm.

an order awarding the attorney’s fees payable by the Social Security
Administration to plaintiff, rather than plaintiff=s attorneys, in accordance with
Astrue v. Ratliff, 560 U.S. 586 (2010).
Because plaintiff is the prevailing party and there are no circumstances in this
case that would make an award under the EAJA unwarranted, this court finds that
plaintiff is entitled to an award in the amount requested. Plaintiff has submitted an
affidavit assigning any award of attorney’s fees under the EAJA to her counsel of
record. An award of attorney’s fees to the prevailing party under the EAJA is
payable to the plaintiff as the litigant and is “subject to a [g]overnment offset to
satisfy a pre-existing debt that the litigant owes the United States.” Id. at
589. Therefore, the court will direct the defendant to make plaintiff’s award of
attorney’s fees payable to plaintiff’s attorneys, subject to any pre-existing debt
plaintiff owes to the United States.
Accordingly,
IT IS HEREBY ORDERED that plaintiff’s Motion for Attorney’s Fees
under the Equal Access to Justice Act [# 25] is GRANTED and plaintiff is
awarded attorney’s fees in the amount of $4,721.75.
IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that the Social Security Administration shall
pay attorney’s fees in the amount of $4,721.75, paid directly to plaintiff’s attorney,
Traci L. Severs, Dennis W. Fox and Associates, subject to any pre-existing debt

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that the plaintiff owes to the United States. The payment shall be mailed to
plaintiff’s attorney, Traci L. Severs, Dennis W. Fox and Associates, 211 N.
Broadway, Suite 2400, St. Louis, MO 63102.

CATHERINE D. PERRY
UNITED STATES DISTRICT JUDGE
Dated this 12th day of June, 2014.

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