Foster v. Comm'r of Soc. Sec.

382 F. Supp. 3d 709
CourtDistrict Court, S.D. Ohio
DecidedApril 10, 2019
DocketCase No. 3:18-cv-2
StatusPublished
Cited by14 cases

This text of 382 F. Supp. 3d 709 (Foster v. Comm'r of Soc. Sec.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, S.D. Ohio primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Foster v. Comm'r of Soc. Sec., 382 F. Supp. 3d 709 (S.D. Ohio 2019).

Opinion

Michael J. Newman, United States Magistrate Judge

This Social Security disability benefits appeal is before the undersigned for disposition based upon the parties' consent. Doc. 8. At issue is whether the Administrative Law Judge ("ALJ") erred in finding Plaintiff not "disabled" and therefore unentitled to Supplemental Security Income ("SSI"). This case is before the Court on Plaintiff's Statement of Errors (doc. 10), the Commissioner's memorandum in opposition (doc. 12), Plaintiff's reply (doc. 13), the administrative record (doc. 5),1 and the record as a whole.

I.

A. Procedural History

Plaintiff filed for SSI alleging disability as a result of a number of impairments including, inter alia , fibromyalgia, an anxiety disorder, and an affective (depressive) disorder. PageID 545.

Plaintiff filed for SSI in 2010 and, after an initial denial of her application, received *712a hearing before ALJ Thomas McNichols on September 28, 2012. PageID 59. ALJ McNichols issued a written decision on November 6, 2012 finding Plaintiff not disabled. PageID 59-76. After the Appeals Council denied Plaintiff's request for a review of the ALJ's decision, Plaintiff filed an appeal with this Court. PageID 541-42. Finding that the ALJ erred in his analysis of Plaintiff's treating physician, this Court remanded for further proceedings. Foster v. Colvin , No. 3:14-cv-66, 2015 WL 66553 (S.D. Ohio Jan. 5, 2015).

Plaintiff then received a second administrative hearing before ALJ Elizabeth Motta on July 27, 2015. PageID 634. ALJ Motta issued a written decision October 28, 2015, again finding Plaintiff not disabled. PageID 771-90. Finding that ALJ Motta's decision did not sufficiently address this Court's directives on remand, the Appeals Council vacated the non-disability finding and remanded the case for further proceedings. PageID 799-801. Specifically, the Appeals Council directed ALJ Motta to "give further consideration to treating source opinion evidence with particular emphasis on SSR 12-2p in conjunction with the claimant's fibromyalgia and explain the weight given to such opinion evidence." PageID 542.

ALJ Motta held a third administrative hearing on October 26, 2016. PageID 578-606. For a third time, an ALJ issued a written decision finding Plaintiff not disabled. PageID 541-68. Specifically, ALJ Motta found at Step Five that, based upon Plaintiff's Residual Functional Capacity ("RFC") to perform a reduced range of light work,2 "there were jobs that existed in significant numbers in the national economy that [Plaintiff] could have performed[.]" PageID 567.

Thereafter, the Appeals Council denied Plaintiff's request to review ALJ Motta's December 29, 2016 decision, making her non-disability finding the final administrative decision of the Commissioner. PageID 529-32. See Casey v. Sec'y of Health & Human Servs. , 987 F.2d 1230, 1233 (6th Cir. 1993). Plaintiff then filed this timely appeal. Cook v. Comm'r of Soc. Sec. , 480 F.3d 432, 435 (6th Cir. 2007). This December 29, 2016 non-disability finding by ALJ Motta (hereinafter, "ALJ") is now before the Court for review.

B. Evidence of Record

The evidence of record is adequately summarized in the ALJ's decision (PageID 541-68), Plaintiff's Statement of Errors (doc. 10), the Commissioner's memorandum in opposition (doc. 12), and Plaintiff's reply (doc. 13). The undersigned incorporates all of the foregoing and sets forth the facts relevant to this appeal herein.

II.

A. Standard of Review

The Court's inquiry on a Social Security appeal is to determine (1) whether the ALJ's non-disability finding is supported by substantial evidence, and (2) whether the ALJ employed the correct legal criteria. 42 U.S.C. § 405(g) ;

*713Bowen v. Comm'r of Soc. Sec., 478 F.3d 742, 745-46 (6th Cir. 2007). In performing this review, the Court must consider the record as a whole. Hephner v. Mathews , 574 F.2d 359, 362 (6th Cir. 1978).

Substantial evidence is "such relevant evidence as a reasonable mind might accept as adequate to support a conclusion." Richardson v. Perales, 402 U.S. 389, 401, 91 S.Ct. 1420, 28 L.Ed.2d 842 (1971). When substantial evidence supports the ALJ's denial of benefits, that finding must be affirmed, even if substantial evidence also exists in the record upon which the ALJ could have found Plaintiff disabled. Buxton v. Halter , 246 F.3d 762, 772 (6th Cir. 2001). Thus, the ALJ has a " 'zone of choice' within which he [or she] can act without the fear of court interference." Id. at 773.

The second judicial inquiry -- reviewing the correctness of the ALJ's legal analysis -- may result in reversal even if the ALJ's decision is supported by substantial evidence in the record. Rabbers v. Comm'r of Soc. Sec. , 582 F.3d 647, 651 (6th Cir. 2009).

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382 F. Supp. 3d 709, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/foster-v-commr-of-soc-sec-ohsd-2019.