Coates v. Commissioner

Opinion

IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE WESTERN DISTRICT OF NORTH CAROLINA ASHEVILLE DIVISION 3:20-cv-00420-WCM

TONI COATES, ) ) Plaintiff, ) ) v. ) ORDER ) ANDREW SAUL, ) Acting Commissioner of the Social ) Security Administration, ) ) Defendant. ) _______________________________ )

This matter is before the Court on the following: 1. Plaintiff’s Motion for Summary Judgment (Doc. 15); and 2. The Commissioner’s “Consent Motion for Reversal and Remand Pursuant to Sentence Four of 42 U.S.C. § 405(g)” (the “Motion to Remand,” Doc. 18).1 Under Sentence Four of 42 U.S.C. § 405(g), the Court has the authority “to enter, upon the pleadings and transcript of the record, a judgment affirming, modifying, or reversing the decision of the Commissioner, with or without remanding the cause for a rehearing.” See Shalala v. Schaefer, 509 U.S. 292, 299, 113 S.Ct. 2625, 2630-31, 125 L.Ed.2d 239 (1993).

1 This matter has been referred to the undersigned for any and all proceedings, including entry of a final judgment. Docs. 13 & 14. Here, the Commissioner asks this Court to “enter a judgment remanding the case to the Commissioner for payment of benefits as of Plaintiff's 55th birthday under sentence four of 42 U.S.C. § 405(g)” and represents that Plaintiff's counsel consents to the motion. Doc. 18 at 1. IT IS THEREFORE ORDERED THAT: 1. The Consent Motion for Reversal and Remand Pursuant to Sentence Four of 42 U.S.C. § 405(g) (Doc. 18) is GRANTED, the Commissioner’s decision is REVERSED, and this matter is REMANDED for the payment of benefits as of Plaintiff's 55th birthday pursuant to Sentence Four of 42 U.S.C. § 405(g); and 2. Plaintiffs Motion for Summary Judgment (Doc. 15) is DENIED AS MOOT.

Signed: July 2, 2021

W. Carleton Metcalf py United States Magistrate Judge + AM J