Wohlers v. Berryhill
Filing
22
ORDER ADOPTING FINDINGS AND RECOMMENDATIONS - granting 16 Social Security Opening Brief; adopting re 21 Findings and Recommendations. Signed by Judge Dana L. Christensen on 12/19/2018. (APP)
FILED
IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
FOR THE DISTRICT OF MONTANA
MISSOULA DIVISION
DEC 19 2018
Clerk, U.S Courts
District Of Montana
Missoula Division
JAMIEL. W.,
CV 17-122-M-DLC-JCL
Plaintiff,
vs.
ORDER
NANCY A. BERRYHILL, Acting
Commissioner of Social Security,
Defendant.
United States Magistrate Judge Jeremiah C. Lynch entered his Order and
Findings and Recommendations on October 16, 2018, recommending that the
Social Security Administration's denial of benefits be reversed and this matter be
remanded to the agency for further proceedings.
(Doc. 21.)
The Commissioner
did not timely object to the Findings and Recommendations, and so waived the
right to de novo review of the record.
28 U.S.C. § 636(b)(l).
This Court
reviews for clear error those findings and recommendations to which no party
objects.
See Thomas v. Arn, 474 U.S. 140, 149-53 (1985).
Clear error exists if
the Court is left with a "definite and firm conviction that a mistake has been
made."
Wash. Mut., Inc. v. United States, 856 F.3d 711, 721 (9th Cir. 2017)
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(citation omitted).
Having reviewed the Findings and Recommendation (Doc. 21 ), the Court
finds no clear error in Judge Lynch's analysis.
Judge Lynch did not clearly err in
determining that the Administrative Law Judge ("ALJ") failed to give specific and
legitimate reasons for rejecting the opinions of the Plaintiffs treating providers,
particularly those of Dr. Brett Heath.
(9th Cir. 2012).
See Hill v. Astrue, 698 F.3d 1153, 1159-60
Nor does the Court find clear error in Judge Lynch's
determination that the ALJ failed to give clear and convincing reasons to discredit
the Plaintiffs subjective symptom testimony when she presented "objective
medical evidence of an underlying impairment which could reasonably be
expected to produce the pain or other symptoms alleged."
Lingenfelter v. Astrue,
504 F .3d 1028, 1036 (9th Cir. 2007) (citation and internal quotation marks
omitted).
The Court further concludes that the record and the law support Judge
Lynch's determinations that: (1) the ALJ failed to give adequate reasons to
discredit lay witness testimony; and (2) the ALJ did not err in assessing the
severity of the Plaintiffs carpal tunnel syndrome and migraine headaches.
The
Court concurs in Judge Lynch's determination that the record is unclear as to
whether the Plaintiff will ultimately be entitled to benefits, and it accordingly
adopts the recommendation to remand for further proceedings, rather than for an
award of benefits.
See Leon v. Berryhill, 880 F.3d 1041, 1045-46 (9th Cir. 2017).
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Accordingly, IT IS ORDERED that Judge Lynch's Findings and
Recommendation (Doc. 21) are ADOPTED IN FULL.
The Commissioner's
decision is REVERSED, and this matter is REMANDED pursuant to sentence four
of 42 U.S.C. § 405(g) for further proceedings consistent with this opinion.
DATED this lq ~day of December, 2018.
Dana L. Christensen, Chief Judge
United States District Court
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