Ward v. Astre

Filing 19

ORDER granting 18 Motion to Remand to Social Security Administration under sentence 4 of 405(g); reversing the decision of the Commissioner and remanding the case for further administrative proceedings. Signed by District Judge Robert J. Conrad, Jr on 1/10/2014. (ejb)

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
WESTERN DISTRICT OF NORTH CAROLINA
ASHEVILLE DIVISION
1:13-cv-35-RJC
PAULA R. WARD,

)
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Plaintiff,
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v.
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CAROLYN W. COLVIN,1
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Acting Commissioner of
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Social Security Administration,
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Defendant.
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__________________________________________ )

ORDER

THIS MATTER comes before the Court on Defendant’s unopposed motion to reverse
the Commissioner’s decision and remand this case to the Commissioner for further action. (Doc.
No. 18). Under sentence six of 42 U.S.C. § 405(g), “[t]he court may, on motion of the
Commissioner of Social Security made for good cause shown before the Commissioner files the
Commissioner's answer, remand the case to the Commissioner of Social Security for further
action by the Commissioner of Social Security.” See also Melkonyan v. Sullivan, 501 U.S. 89,
101 n.2 (1991) (“Sentence six . . . authorizes the district court to remand on motion by the
Secretary made before the Secretary has filed a response in the action.”); Shalala v. Schaefer,
509 U.S. 292, 305 n.2 (1993) (“Sentence-six remands may be ordered in only two situations:
where the Secretary requests a remand before answering the complaint, or where new, material
evidence is adduced that was for good cause not presented before the agency.”).
The Commissioner contends that remand would be appropriate to reassess Plaintiff’s
1

Defendant filed the present action on October 22, 2012 to appeal Michael J. Astrue’s denial of
her social security claim. Carolyn W. Colvin became the Acting Commissioner of Social
Security on February 14, 2013. Pursuant to rule 25(d) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure,
Carolyn W. Colvin was substituted for Michael J. Astrue as the Defendant in this suit.

maximum residual functional capacity. (Doc. No. 18).
Accordingly, the Court hereby REVERSES the decision of the Commissioner and
REMANDS this case for further administrative proceedings.
IT IS, THEREFORE, ORDERED, for good cause shown, that Defendant’s Motion for
Remand, (Doc. No. 18), is GRANTED.
Signed: January 10, 2014

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