May v. Colvin

Filing 22

MEMORANDUM AND ORDER: IT IS HEREBY ORDERED that Defendant's Motion to Reverse and Remand (Doc. 21) is GRANTED. IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that the decision of the Commissioner be reversed and this cause be remanded to the Commissioner for further pr oceedings pursuant to sentence four of section 205(g), 42 U.S.C. §405(g), for those reasons set forth in this Memorandum and Order. A separate written Judgment will be entered in favor of the Plaintiff and against the Defendant. Signed by Magistrate Judge Abbie Crites-Leoni on 2/17/2016. (JMC)

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
EASTERN DISTRICT OF MISSOURI
SOUTHEASTERN DIVISION
J.B. MAY,
Plaintiff,
vs.
CAROLYN W. COLVIN,
Acting Commissioner of Social Security,
Defendant.

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) Case No. 4:15CV00778ACL
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MEMORANDUM AND ORDER
This is an action under sentence four of section 205(g), 42 U.S.C. §405(g) for judicial
review of Defendant’s final decision denying Plaintiff’s application for benefits under the Social
Security Act. Currently pending is Defendant’s Motion to Reverse and Remand. (Doc. 21.)
Plaintiff has not filed a response.
In her motion, Defendant requests that the Court reverse the decision of the
administrative law judge (“ALJ”), and remand this action to the Commissioner pursuant to
sentence four of section 205(g), 42 U.S.C. §405(g). Defendant states that, after careful review of
the above-captioned case, agency counsel requested that the Appeals Council of the Social
Security Administration reconsider the Commissioner’s decision. Upon review of the Court’s
remand order, the Appeals Council will remand this case to the Administration Law Judge
(ALJ), who will be directed to obtain evidence from a vocational expert to clarify the effect of
the assessed limitations on Plaintiff’s occupational base. Before relying on the vocational expert
evidence, the ALJ will identify and resolve any conflicts between the occupational evidence
provided by the vocational expert and information in the Dictionary of Occupational Titles and
its companion publication, the Selected Characteristics of Occupations.

Sentence four of 42 U.S.C. §405(g) states that “[t]he court shall have power to enter,
upon the pleadings and transcript of record, a judgment affirming, modifying, or reversing the
decision of the Commissioner of Social Security, with or without remanding the cause for a
rehearing.” In order for the Court to properly remand a case to the Commissioner pursuant to
sentence four, the Court must enter an order either affirming, modifying, or reversing the
Commissioner’s decision. See Brown v. Barnhart, 282 F.3d 580, 581 (8th Cir. 2002).
The undersigned believes that it is appropriate to reverse and remand this case in order to
permit the Commissioner to take further action as requested in her motion.
Accordingly,
IT IS HEREBY ORDERED that Defendant’s Motion to Reverse and Remand (Doc. 21)
is GRANTED.
IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that the decision of the Commissioner be reversed and
this cause be remanded to the Commissioner for further proceedings pursuant to sentence four
of section 205(g), 42 U.S.C. §405(g), for those reasons set forth in this Memorandum and Order.
A separate written Judgment will be entered in favor of the Plaintiff and against the Defendant.

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ABBIE CRITES-LEONI
UNITED STATES MAGISTRATE JUDGE
Dated this 17th day of February, 2016.