Brown v. Colvin

992 F. Supp. 2d 947, 2014 WL 199839, 2014 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 5667
CourtDistrict Court, D. Nebraska
DecidedJanuary 16, 2014
DocketNo. 8:13CV80
StatusPublished
Cited by3 cases

This text of 992 F. Supp. 2d 947 (Brown v. Colvin) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, D. Nebraska primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Brown v. Colvin, 992 F. Supp. 2d 947, 2014 WL 199839, 2014 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 5667 (D. Neb. 2014).

Opinion

MEMORANDUM OPINION

LYLE E. STROM, Senior District Judge.

This matter is before the Court on the motion of the plaintiff, Albert Brown (“Brown”), to reopen his First Application because of Due Process and similar fault violations. Brown also appeals a final decision by the Commissioner of the Social Security Administration (“SSA”) denying Brown’s application for disability benefits. After review of the parties’ respective positions, the Court makes the following findings. The Second Application decision of the Administrative Law Judge (“ALJ”) is supported by the substantial evidence on the record and the Court will dismiss the remainder of the claim.

There are two applications for Disability Insurance Benefits in this case: (1) an application dated October 5, 2006 (“First Application”), and (2) an application dated August 17, 2009 (“Second Application”). The Court will first address the merits of Brown’s First Application claims. The Court will then proceed to address the merits of the Second Application claims.

I. REVIEW OF FIRST APPLICATION BACKGROUND

Brown was a forty-one-year-old man at the beginning of the First Application [951]*951(Brown v. Astrue (“Brown I ”), 4:08CV483, 2009 WL 88049, at *2 (E.D.Mo. Jan. 12, 2009)). He possessed a high school diploma and worked in computer installation, computer maintenance, and system analysis (Id.). While on those jobs, Brown lifted weights ranging from 25-100 pounds (Id.). Brown left his last job in December 2004 in preparation for another job that never came to fruition (Id.). Brown collected unemployment benefits from December 20041 until August 2005 (Id.). Concurrent with the end of his unemployment benefits, Brown experienced a fall which injured his back (Id.). Brown received no medical treatment or medication for this or any other of his ailments, though he once visited a clinic but determined that the line was too long and left without undergoing an examination (Id.).

On October 5, 2006, Brown filed his First Application claiming disability based upon his back injury, obesity, high blood pressure, and sleep apnea (Id. at *1-2). SSA provided Brown with a consultive medical evaluation with Dr. Elbert Cason on November 16, 2006 (Id. at *3). Dr. Cason provided a thorough medical analysis of Brown and diagnosed Brown with low back pain with radiation down the right posterior thigh; unregulated high blood pressure; sleep apnea caused by morbid obesity; and morbid obesity (Id.). The ALJ in the First Application scheduled Brown for additional medical examination on February 18, 2008, but Brown informed the ALJ that he would not participate in further medical examinations (Id. at *4).

Initially, SSA denied the First Application on December 8, 20062 (Id. at *1). The ALJ denied Brown’s First Application on February 20, 2008. The Appeals Council, the District Court for Eastern District of Missouri, and the Eighth Circuit upheld the ALJ’s decision (Brown v. Astrue (“Brown II ”), 356 Fed.Appx. 906 (8th Cir. 2009)).

Brown asserts one factual error in his First Application claim; he claims the signature of J.M. Boone (“Boone”) on a residual functional capacity (“RFC”) assessment form misled the ALJ into granting a higher deference to Boone’s lay opinion. Boone signed the RFC assessment which she completed December 7, 2008. Boone signed her name in a signature box with the typeface “Medical Consultant’s Signature.” However, Boone is not a Medical Consultant as defined under 20 C.F.R. § 404.1616(b) and the SSA does not refute that fact in any of its briefs. Brown cites Dewey v. Astrue, for the proposition that the First Application’s proceedings, were harmful error based upon a non-Consultant signing the Medical Consultant’s signature box.

In the case before this Court, Brown contends that the greater deference the ALJ purportedly awarded Boone’s opinion violated his Due Process rights and constituted reversible error. SSA contends that the Court cannot review the First Application because of the doctrine of res judicata. The Court has reviewed the arguments and determines Brown’s claims are unfounded and the ALJ’s error, if any, was harmless.

[952]*952LAW & ANALYSIS

1. RES JUDICATA

“Res judicata bars subsequent applications for SSDI and SSI based on the same facts and issues the Commissioner previously found to be insufficient to prove the claimant was disabled.” Hillier v. SSA 486 F.3d 359, 364-65 (8th Cir.2007) (citations omitted). If res judicata applies, “the medical evidence from the initial proceeding cannot be subsequently reevaluated.” Hillier, 486 F.3d at 365. An ALJ may refuse to consider any issue pursuant to the doctrine of res judicata. 20 C.F.R. § 404.957(1).

The Commissioner may waive the res judicata defense by reopening the claimant’s previous application. See Hillier, 486 F.3d at 364 n. 2 (citations omitted). A second application may constitute a reopening. See Roesch v. Apfel, 17 F.Supp.2d 1080, 1087 (D.Neb.1998) (citation omitted).

Here, the ALJ refused to reopen Brown’s First Application when the ALJ stated that the previous decision was the “ultimately final and binding decision of the Commissioner.” Tr. 15. Generally, “federal courts lack jurisdiction to review an administrative decision not to reopen a previous claim for benefits.” Byam v. Barnhart, 336 F.3d 172, 179 (2d Cir.2003) (citing Califano v. Sanders, 430 U.S. 99, 107-09, 97 S.Ct. 980, 51 L.Ed.2d 192 (1977)). However, “[fjederal courts may review the Commissioner’s decision [not to reopen a case] in two circumstances: where the Commissioner has constructively reopened the case, and where the claimant has been denied due process.” Id. at 180.

2. CONSTRUCTIVE REOPENING

The Court must evaluate the actions of the Second Application’s ALJ to ascertain whether that ALJ constructively reopened the First Application. Brown contends that the Second Application’s ALJ used evidence from the First Application and therefore “opened the door” for the Court to reconsider his First Application. Filing No. 32, at 3. Brown’s claim is baseless.

“If the Commissioner ‘reviews the entire record and renders a decision on the merits, the earlier decision will be deemed to have been reopened, and any claim of administrative res judicata to have been waived’ and thus, ‘the claim is ... subject to judicial review.’ ” Byam, 336 F.3d at 180. However, “[t]he ALJ’s use of evidence presented with a prior application in order to determine the claimant’s medical history does not amount to a reopening of the first application.” Howard v. Apfel, 17 F.Supp.2d 955, 966 (W.D.Mo.1998) (citations omitted); see Hillier, 486 F.3d at 364 n. 2 (citations and quotation omitted).

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992 F. Supp. 2d 947, 2014 WL 199839, 2014 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 5667, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/brown-v-colvin-ned-2014.