Vandervort v. Astrue

Filing 19

ORDER. Plaintiffs Motion for attorney fees under section 206(b), 42 U.S.C. §406(b) (Doc. # 16) is granted in part. Signed on 5/21/14 by District Judge Ortrie D. Smith. (Matthes, Renea)

IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE
WESTERN DISTRICT OF MISSOURI
WESTERN DIVISION
DEBRA A. VANDERVORT,
Plaintiff,
v.
CAROLYN W. COLVIN,
Commissioner of Social Security
Defendant.

)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)

Case No. 13-170-CV-W-ODS-SSA

ORDER GRANTING IN PART PLAINTIFF’S MOTION FOR 406(b) FEES
Pending is Plaintiff’s Motion for attorney fees under section 206(b), 42 U.S.C. §
406(b) (Doc. # 16). Previously this Court entered an Order granting Plaintiff’s
application for attorney fees under the EAJA, 28 U.S.C. § 2412, in the amount of
$2,518.93. Pursuant to the fee agreement in this case, Plaintiff’s counsel now seeks
payment of 25% of the past-due benefits, or $8,483.50. Plaintiff seeks this award for
14.4 hours of work, at an equivalent rate of $589.13 per hour. Defendant does not
object to the amount of the request but notes that the Court is empowered to review the
amount for reasonableness in light of Grisbrecht v. Barnhart, 535 U.S. 789 (2002).
The Court concludes the hourly rate Plaintiff seeks is too high for this type of
work. Accordingly, the Court grants Plaintiff’s counsel’s motion in part. The Court
orders an award of $350 per hour for 14.4 hours of attorney time for a total of $5,040
made payable to Roger M. Driskell. Because Plaintiff’s counsel previously received an
award of $2,518.93 under the EAJA, he is ordered to refund this smaller amount to
Plaintiff.
IT IS SO ORDERED.

DATE: May 21, 2014

/s/ Ortrie D. Smith
ORTRIE D. SMITH, SENIOR JUDGE
UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT