Gurina v. Berryhill

336 F. Supp. 3d 524
District Court, E.D. Pennsylvania·Decided October 4, 2018·No. CIVIL ACTION NO. 16-3879·Published·Cited by 2 cases

Opinion

Rufe, District Judge.

Plaintiff Victoria Gurina appeals herein the decision of the Commissioner of Social Security denying her claim for supplemental security income ("SSI") under Title XVI of the Social Security Act. Plaintiff seeks reversal of the Commissioner's decision, arguing that the Administrative Law Judge's ("ALJ") finding that she is not disabled was not based on substantial evidence. The Commissioner argues that the ALJ's determination was supported by substantial evidence and should therefore be upheld.

The Court referred the case to United States Magistrate Judge Elizabeth T. Hey, who has issued a Report and Recommendation ("R & R") that the Commissioner's decision to deny benefits be affirmed. Plaintiff has filed objections to the R & R, to which the Commissioner has responded. Upon this Court's careful, independent consideration of the administrative record, the parties' submissions, and the applicable law, the Court will remand for further proceedings.

I. FACTUAL AND PROCEDURAL BACKGROUND

The R & R presents an exhaustive review of the procedural history, factual background, evidence, and the most recent ALJ decision. Plaintiff makes no objection to this portion of the R & R, and the Court hereby adopts and incorporates parts I-III of the R & R.

Plaintiff filed an application for SSI on March 27, 2013, alleging a disability onset date of January 26, 2013. Plaintiff is a 49-year-old woman with a twelfth-grade education and no relevant work history. Plaintiff alleged that she was disabled as a result of depression, headaches, high blood pressure, thyroid issues, and fibromyalgia.

After Plaintiff's original application from 2013 was denied, an administrative hearing was held on November 19, 2014 by an ALJ who determined that Plaintiff was not disabled for purposes of receiving SSI. At the hearing, Plaintiff testified that she cannot work because it is difficult for her to communicate with others, she does not go outside by herself, and she suffers from crying spells and anxiety attacks.1 In consideration of Plaintiff's symptoms and the opinions of several medical professionals, including Dr. Bronstein and Dr. Langberg,2 the ALJ found that Plaintiff had the residual functioning capacity ("RFC") to perform:

[S]imple, routine, repetitive work with no assembly lines or mandated teams; no public contact; as self-paced as possible, with no hourly quotas, such that the rate of work can vary or even briefly stop, but all assigned work must be completed by the end of the work shift or workday.3

*528When asked what type of work a hypothetical person with the limitations outlined in the RFC could perform, the vocational expert ("VE") named the jobs of table assembler, hand stuffer, and product bagger.4

The Appeals Council denied Plaintiff's request for review on May 18, 2016, and Plaintiff then filed an action in this Court. Of Plaintiff's many arguments concerning whether the ALJ's decision was supported by substantial evidence, Plaintiff now limits her objections to the R & R as follows: (1) The R & R improperly found that Dr. Bronstein's opinions were either adequately incorporated into the RFC or properly rejected by the ALJ, and (2) the R & R improperly found that Dr. Langberg's opinions were either assigned sufficient weight, or properly rejected, by the ALJ.5

II. STANDARD OF REVIEW

The Social Security Act provides for judicial review by a district court of any "final decision of the Commissioner of Social Security" in a disability proceeding.6 Upon review, a district court may enter a judgment "affirming, modifying, or reversing the decision of the Commissioner of Social Security, with or without remanding the cause for a rehearing."7 The Commissioner's findings "as to any fact, if supported by substantial evidence, shall be conclusive."8 Accordingly, the Court's scope of review is limited to a plenary review of all legal issues and a determination of whether the ALJ's findings of fact are supported by substantial evidence.9

"Substantial evidence" refers to "such relevant evidence as a reasonable mind might accept as adequate to support a conclusion."10 The amount required is "more than a mere scintilla," but less than a preponderance of the evidence.11 If the ALJ's factual findings were based on the correct legal standards and were supported by substantial evidence, the district court is bound by them, "even if [such court] would have decided the factual inquiry differently."12 The substantial evidence standard is "deferential and includes deference to inferences drawn from the facts if they, in turn, are supported by substantial evidence."13

Finally, in considering whether to approve the R & R of a magistrate judge, a district court must review de novo those portions of the R & R to which a party has objected.14 The district court may, in its discretion, "accept, reject or modify, in whole or in part, the findings or recommendations made by the magistrate *529judge."15

III. SOCIAL SECURITY LAW

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

Gurina v. Berryhill, 336 F. Supp. 3d 524 (E.D. Pa. 2018).

336 F. Supp. 3d 524 (Gurina v. Berryhill) — published by Counsel Stack Legal Research, free access to 12M+ legal documents.

Related

DAILEY v. KIJAKAZI
E.D. Pennsylvania, 2024
DEANGELO, JR. v. SAUL
E.D. Pennsylvania, 2022