Peters v. Colvin

Filing 34

MEMORANDUM AND ORDER granting 29 Motion for Attorney Fees Fees awarded to Plaintiff against Defendant. By separate document, the Court shall enter judgment for plaintiff and against defendant providing that plaintiff is awarded attorney fees of $7,480.33. Ordered by Judge John M. Gerrard. (SLP)

IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
FOR THE DISTRICT OF NEBRASKA
MELINDA STEVENS PETERS,
Plaintiff,

4:13-CV-3082

vs.
MEMORANDUM AND ORDER
CAROLYN W. COLVIN, Acting
Commissioner of the Social Security
Administration,
Defendant.
This matter is before the Court upon the plaintiff's motion for attorney
fees (filing 29) pursuant to the Equal Access to Justice Act, 28 U.S.C. §
2412(d). Plaintiff has requested fees in the amount of $7,927.56,
representing 44.35 hours of work at $178.75 an hour.1 However, after
conferring, the parties have agreed instead that an award of $7,480.33 is
reasonable.
The Court has determined that the plaintiff was the prevailing party in
this action, as this case was remanded to the Commissioner for further
action. The Court further finds that the position of the Commissioner was not
substantially justified, for the reasons set forth in the Court's previous
Memorandum and Order (filing 27). See Koss v. Sullivan, 982 F.2d 1226 (8th
Cir. 1993). Finally, the Court finds that the motion for fees was filed in a
timely fashion,2 and that the fees the parties have agreed to are reasonable.
Therefore, the plaintiff is entitled to an award of attorney fees in the amount
requested. Therefore,
IT IS ORDERED:

1

Peters has presented uncontested evidence that a cost-of-living increase is warranted (filing 30-1).
See, § 2412(d)(2)(A)(ii); Johnson v. Sullivan, 919 F.2d 503, 505 (8th Cir. 1990).

An Equal Access to Justice Act application based on a district court judgment remanding
a case pursuant to sentence four of 42 U.S.C. § 405(g) must be filed no later than 30 days
after the sentence four judgment has been entered and the appeal period has run such that
the judgment is no longer appealable. See Pottsmith v. Barnhart, 306 F.3d 526, 527-28 (8th
Cir. 2002); see also, Shalala v. Schaefer, 509 U.S. 292, 302 (1993); Melkonyan v. Sullivan,
501 U.S. 89, 94-97 (1991).
2

1.

The plaintiff's motion for attorney fees (filing 29) is
granted.

2.

By separate document, the Court shall enter judgment for
plaintiff and against defendant providing that plaintiff is
awarded attorney fees of $7,480.33.

Dated this 27th day of October, 2014.
BY THE COURT:
John M. Gerrard
United States District Judge

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