Cichocki v. Astrue

534 F. App'x 71
Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit·Decided September 5, 2013·No. 12-3343-cv·Unpublished·Cited by 223 cases

Opinion

SUMMARY ORDER

Plaintiff-Appellant Melanie Cichocki (“Cichocki”) appeals from a judgment of the United States District Court for the Western District of New York (Skretney, J.), entered July 30, 2012, dismissing her complaint challenging the denial of disability insurance benefits under Title II of the Social Security Act (the “SSA” or “Act”), 42 U.S.C. § 401 et seq. Cichocki contends that the district court erred in finding that substantial evidence supported the decision of Administrative Law Judge William Weir (“ALJ”) that Cichocki was not disabled under sections 216(i) and 223(d) of the Act. Cichocki presents four principal arguments on appeal: (1) that substantial evidence does not support the ALJ’s determination that Cichocki’s bipolar disorder is not a severe impairment; (2) that the ALJ improperly assessed Cichocki’s credibility; (3) that the ALJ’s residual functional capacity (“RFC”) determination is not supported by substantial evidence and that the ALJ’s failure to conduct a function-by-function assessment as part of his RFC determination requires remand; and (4) that, in light of these other errors, the ALJ erred in concluding that Cichocki is capable of performing her past work as a bakery clerk. The third argument is addressed in a per curiam opinion that accompanies this summary order. We assume the parties’ familiarity with the underlying facts and procedural history of the case, and with the issues on appeal, which we discuss only as necessary to explain our decision to affirm.

In reviewing a denial of disability benefits, we conduct a plenary review of the record and “focus on the administrative ruling rather than the district court opinion.” Moran v. Astrue, 569 F.3d 108, 112 (2d Cir.2009) (internal quotation marks omitted). We will affirm the denial of benefits if the decision is supported by substantial evidence. Id. “Substantial evidence means more than a mere scintilla. It means such relevant evidence as a reasonable mind might accept as adequate to support a conclusion.” Burgess v. Astrue, 537 F.3d 117, 127 (2d Cir.2008) (internal quotation marks and citation omitted).

A claimant is disabled and entitled to benefits if he is unable to “to engage in any substantial gainful activity by reason of any medically determinable physical or mental impairment which can be expected to result in death or which has lasted or can be expected to last for a continuous period of not less than 12 months.” 42 U.S.C. § 423(d)(1)(A). Federal regulations set forth a “five-step sequential evaluation process” that guides an ALJ’s determination of whether a claimant is entitled to benefits. 20 C.F.R. § 404.1520(a)(4). At step one, the ALJ must consider whether the claimant is performing substantial gainful activity. Id. If so, the claimant is deemed not disabled, and the inquiry ends. At step two, the ALJ must determine whether the claimant has “a severe medically determinable physical or mental impairment *74 that meets the duration requirement in [20 C.F.R.] § 404.1509, or a combination of impairments that is severe and meets the duration requirement.” Id. If not, the claimant is deemed not disabled, and the inquiry ends. At step three, the ALJ must consider whether the claimant’s severe impairments meet or equal one of the enumerated disabilities listed in an Appendix 1 of Subpart P to 20 C.F.R. § 404. Id. If so, and if the impairment is of sufficient duration, the claimant is deemed disabled, and the inquiry ends. At step four, the ALJ must assess the claimant’s residual functional capacity to perform work. If the claimant’s RFC permits him to perform his past relevant work, then the claimant is deemed not disabled, and the inquiry ends. Id. Finally, at step five, the ALJ must consider the claimant’s RFC, age, education, and work experience to determine whether the claimant “can make an adjustment to other work.” Id. If he can make an adjustment, he is deemed not disabled. If he cannot, he is deemed disabled.

The claimant bears both “the general burden of proving that he or she has a disability within the meaning of the Act” and the specific “burden of proving his or her case at steps one through four of the sequential five-step framework.” Burgess, 537 F.3d at 128 (internal quotation marks and citation omitted).

1. Severity of Bipolar Disorder and Treating Physician Rule

Cichocki argues that the ALJ erred in step two of his analysis when he determined that her bipolar disorder did not constitute a severe impairment. Specifically, Cichocki contends that the ALJ improperly discounted the medical source statement of her treating physician Dr. Dham Gupta — which indicated that Ci-chocki’s bipolar disorder would moderately limit her ability to perform a number of tasks — and that the resulting determination was not supported by substantial evidence. We disagree.

Free access — add to your briefcase to read the full text and ask questions with AI

Cichocki v. Astrue, 534 F. App'x 71 (2d Cir. 2013).

534 F. App'x 71 (Cichocki v. Astrue) — published by Counsel Stack Legal Research, free access to 12M+ legal documents.

Related