Odoms v. Colvin

194 F. Supp. 3d 415, 2016 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 89545
CourtDistrict Court, W.D. North Carolina
DecidedJuly 11, 2016
DocketDOCKET NO. 1:15-cv-00252-MOC
StatusPublished
Cited by7 cases

This text of 194 F. Supp. 3d 415 (Odoms v. Colvin) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, W.D. North Carolina primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Odoms v. Colvin, 194 F. Supp. 3d 415, 2016 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 89545 (W.D.N.C. 2016).

Opinion

ORDER

Max O. Cogburn Jr., United States District Judge

THIS MATTER is before the court on Plaintiffs Motion for Summary Judgment (#9) and Defendant’s Motion for Summary Judgment (#11). The matter has been fully briefed and is ripe for review. Having carefully considered such motions and reviewed the pleadings, the court enters the following findings, conclusions, and Order.

I. Procedural History

Monica Odoms (“Plaintiff’) applied for a period of Title II disability insurance benefits and Title XVI Supplemental Security Income (“SSI”) on February 9, 2012 with an alleged onset date of March 12, 2007. (Tr. 81). Her claim was initially denied on March 28, 2012 and was again denied upon reconsideration on January 14, 2013. (Tr. 98, 105). Upon Plaintiffs request, a hearing was held before an Administrative Law Judge (“ALJ”) on November 15, 2013. (Tr. 23). An unfavorable decision was returned on March 13, 2014. (Tr. 20). On September 10, 2015, the Appeals Council (“AC”) denied Plaintiffs request for review, thus making the ALJ’s decision the final decision of the Commissioner. (Tr. 1-5). Plaintiff has exhausted all available administrative remedies, and this case is now ripe for judicial review pursuant to 42 U.S.C. § 405(g).

[418]*418II. Factual Background

It appearing that the ALJ’s findings of fact are supported by substantial evidence, the undersigned adopts and incorporates such findings herein as if fully set forth. Such findings are referenced in the substantive discussion which follows.

Specifically as it pertains to Plaintiffs assignments of error, the record contains conflicting evidence regarding Plaintiffs level of literacy. Medical records and testimony at the hearing indicate that Plaintiff took special education classes as a youth and that she has a limited ability to read, write, and spell. (See e.g. Tr. 46, 204, 256, 290, 306, 910). However, Plaintiffs school transcript specifically states that there were no records of Plaintiff being enrolled in special education or testing, (Tr. 195). In addition, Plaintiff indicated on her Disability Report that she had not attended special education classes. (Tr. 158).

III, Standard op Review

The Court’s review of a final decision of the Commissioner is limited to (1) whether substantial evidence supports the Commissioner’s decision, see Richardson v. Perales, 402 U.S. 389, 91 S.Ct. 1420, 28 L.Ed.2d 842 (1971), and (2) whether the Commissioner applied the correct legal standards, Hays v. Sullivan, 907 F.2d 1453, 1456 (4th Cir.1990). The court does not review a final decision of the Commissioner de novo. Smith v. Schweiker, 795 F.2d 343, 345 (4th Cir.1986).

The Social Security Act provides that “[t]he findings of the Commissioner of Social Security as to any fact, if supported by substantial evidence, shall be conclusive...” 42 U.S.C. § 405(g). The Fourth Circuit has defined “substantial evidence” as “more than a scintilla and [doing] more than creating] a suspicion of the existence of a fact to be established. It means such relevant evidence as a reasonable mind might accept as adequate to support a conclusion.” Smith v. Heckler, 782 F.2d 1176, 1179 (4th Cir.1986) (quoting Perales, 402 U.S. at 401, 91 S.Ct. 1420).

The court may not re-weigh the evidence or substitute its own judgment for that of the- Commissioner, even if it disagrees with the Commissioner’s decision, so long as there is substantial evidence in the record to support the final decision below. Hays, 907 F,2d at 1456; Lester v. Schweiker, 683 F.2d 838, 841 (4th Cir.1982). Even if the undersigned were to find that a preponderance of the evidence weighed against the Commissioner’s decision, the Commissioner’s decision would have to be affirmed if supported by substantial evidence. Id.

The Fourth Circuit has articulated the following standard relevant to substantial evidence review:

the district court reviews the record to ensure that the ALJ’s factual findings are supported by substantial evidence and that its legal findings are free of error. If the reviewing court decides that the ALJ’s decision is not supported by substantial evidence, it may affirm, modify, or reverse the ALJ’s ruling with or without remanding the cause for a rehearing. A necessary predicate to engaging in substantial evidence review is a record of the basis for the ALJ’s ruling. The record should include a discussion of which evidence the ALJ found credible and why, and specific application of the pertinent legal requirements to the record evidence. If the reviewing court has no way of evaluating the basis for the ALJ’s decision, then the proper course, except in rare circumstances, is .to remand to the agency for additional investigation or explanation.

Radford v. Colvin, 734 F.3d 288, 295 (4th Cir.2013) (internal citations and quotations omitted). In the absence of meaningful factual development by the ALJ, a district [419]*419court commits reversible error by “mining facts from the ... record.” Brown v. Colvin, 639 Fed.Appx. 921, 922, 2016 WL 502918, *1 (4th Cir. February 9, 2016). Instead, courts are to “remand to avoid engaging in fact-finding ‘in' the first instance’ and to allow the ALJ to further develop the record so that ... meaningful judicial review [may occur].” Id. at 923, at *2 (quoting Radford, 734 F.3d at 296).

When considering cross-motions for summary judgment, the court “examines each motion separately, employing the familiar standard under [Fed. R. Civ. P. 56].” Desmond v. PNGI Charles Town Gaming, L.L.C., 630 F.3d 351 (4th Cir. 2011); Rossignol v. Voorhaar, 316 F.3d 516, 523 (4th Cir.2003) (the court reviews each motion separately on its own merits in order to “determine whether either party deserves judgment as a matter of law”) (internal citations omitted).

IV. Substantial Evidence

1. Introduction

The court has read the transcript of Plaintiffs administrative hearing, closely read the decision of the ALJ, and reviewed the extensive exhibits in the administrative record. The issue is not whether the court might have reached a different conclusion had it been presented with the same testimony and evidentiary materials, but whether the decision of the ALJ is supported by substantial evidence. For the reasons explained herein, the court finds that the ALJ’s decision is not supported by substantial evidence.

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Bluebook (online)
194 F. Supp. 3d 415, 2016 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 89545, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/odoms-v-colvin-ncwd-2016.