Rodriguez-Gonzalez v. Astrue

854 F. Supp. 2d 176, 2012 WL 1242306, 2012 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 51989
CourtDistrict Court, D. Puerto Rico
DecidedMarch 26, 2012
DocketCivil No. 10-2199 (ADC)
StatusPublished
Cited by11 cases

This text of 854 F. Supp. 2d 176 (Rodriguez-Gonzalez v. Astrue) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, D. Puerto Rico primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Rodriguez-Gonzalez v. Astrue, 854 F. Supp. 2d 176, 2012 WL 1242306, 2012 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 51989 (prd 2012).

Opinion

OPINION AND ORDER

AIDA M. DELGADO-COLÓN, Chief Judge.

Plaintiff, Aixa I. Rodríguez-González (“plaintiff’ or “Rodríguez-González”), filed the present action against defendant, Michael J. Astrue (“defendant” or “Astrue”), seeking review of an Administrative Law Judge’s (“ALJ”) decision to deny plaintiffs claim for disability benefits pursuant. Docket No. 1. On May 5, 2011, defendant answered the complaint. Docket No. 6. The parties each submitted a memorandum of law and defendant filed the certified administrative record of the proceedings and evidence considered by the administrative law judge. Docket Nos. 11, 12.

Pending before the court is Magistrate-Judge Justo Arenas’ (“Magistrate-Judge”) Report and Recommendation (“R & R”) recommending that the decision of the Social Security Commissioner be affirmed. Docket No. 16. Plaintiff has failed to interpose any objections.

I. Applicable Standard of Review

A district court may refer pending motions to a Magistrate-Judge for a report and recommendation. 28 U.S.C. § 636(b)(1)(B); Fed.R.Civ.P. 72(b); L. Cv. R. 72(a). Any party adversely affected by the recommendation issued may file written objections within fourteen (14) days of being served with the report and recommendation. 28 U.S.C. § 636(b)(1); Fed. R.Civ.P. 72(b); L. Civ. R. 72(d). A party that files a timely objection is entitled to a de novo determination of “those portions of the report or specified proposed findings or recommendations to which specific objection is made.” Sylva v. Culebra Dive Shop, 389 F.Supp.2d 189, 191-92 (D.P.R. 2005) (citing United States v. Raddatz, 447 U.S. 667, 673, 100 S.Ct. 2406, 65 L.Ed.2d 424 (1980)). The objections must specifically identify those findings or recommendations to which objections are being made. “The district court need not consider frivolous, conclusive, or general objections.” Rivera-García v. United States, Civ. No. 06-1004(PG), 2008 WL 3287236, *1 (D.P.R. Aug. 7, 2008) (citing Battle v. U.S. Parole Comm’n, 834 F.2d 419 (5th Cir.1987)). Moreover, to the extent the objections amount to no more than general or conclusory objections to the report and recommendation, without specifying to which issues in the report objection is made, or where the objections are repetitive of the arguments already made to the magistrate-judge, a de novo review is unwarranted. Id. “Instead, the report and recommendation is reviewed by the district judge for clear error.” Id. (citing Camardo v. Gen. Motors Hourly-Rate Employees Pension Plan, 806 F.Supp. 380, 382 (W.D.N.Y.1992) (“It is improper for an objecting party to ... submit[ ] papers to a district court which are nothing more than a rehashing of the same arguments and positions taken in the original papers submitted to the Magistrate Judge. Clearly, parties are not to be afforded a ‘second bite at the apple’ when they file objections to a R & R.”)).

In conducting its review, the court is free to “accept, reject, or modify, in whole or in part, the findings or recom[179]*179mendations made by the magistrate-judge.” 28 U.S.C. § 636(a)(b)(l); see also Templeman v. Chris Craft Corp., 770 F.2d 245, 247 (1st Cir.1985); Alamo Rodríguez v. Pfizer Pharma., Inc., 286 F.Supp.2d 144, 146 (D.P.R.2003). Hence, the court may accept those parts of the report and recommendation to which the plaintiff does not object. See Hernández-Mejias v. General Elec., 428 F.Supp.2d 4, 6 (D.P.R.2005) (citing LaCedra v. Donald W. Wyatt Det. Facility, 334 F.Supp.2d 114, 125-26 (D.R.I.2004)).

II. Conclusion

After careful consideration of the Report and Recommendation and the record, the court hereby ADOPTS the Magistrate-Judge’s Report and Recommendation in full. Docket No. 16. Defendant’s final decision is hereby AFFIRMED and the instant action is DISMISSED.

The Clerk of Court is to enter judgment accordingly.

IT IS SO ORDERED.

MAGISTRATE JUDGE’S REPORT AND RECOMMENDATION

JUSTO ARENAS, United States Magistrate Judge.

On December 9, 2010, plaintiff filed this petition for judicial review of a final decision of the Commissioner of Social Security which denied her application for a period of disability and Social Security disability insurance benefits. She filed a memorandum of law seeking reversal of the final decision on July 7, 2011. (Docket No. 11.) Defendant filed a memorandum in support of the final decision on August 2, 2011.

Plaintiff has the burden of proving that she has become disabled within the meaning of the Social Security Act. See Bowen v. Yuckert, 482 U.S. 137, 138, 107 S.Ct. 2287, 96 L.Ed.2d 119 (1987). A finding of disability requires that plaintiff be unable to perform any substantial gainful activity or work because of a medical condition which has lasted or which can be expected to last for a continuous period of at least twelve months. See 42 U.S.C. § 416(i)(l). In general terms, evidence of a physical or mental impairment or a combination of both is insufficient for the Commissioner to award benefits. There must be a causal relationship between such impairment or impairments and plaintiffs inability to perform substantial gainful activity. See McDonald v. Sec’y of Health & Human Servs., 795 F.2d 1118, 1120 (1st Cir.1986). Partial disability does not qualify a claimant for benefits. See Rodríguez v. Celebrezze, 349 F.2d 494, 496 (1st Cir.1965).

The only issue for the court to determine is whether the final decision that plaintiff is not under a disability is supported by substantial evidence in the record when looking at such record as a whole. In order to be entitled to such benefits, plaintiff must establish that she was disabled under the Act at any time between June 18, 2003, her alleged onset date, and March 31, 2006, when she last met the earnings requirements for disability benefits under the Social Security Act. See Evangelista v. Sec’y of Health & Human Servs., 826 F.2d 136, 140 n. 3 (1st Cir.1987).

After evaluating the evidence of record, Administrative Law Judge John D. McNamee-Alemany entered the following findings on July 24, 2007:

1. The claimant last met the insured status requirements of the Social Security Act on March 31, 2006.
2.

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

Related

Taylor v. State of Washington
W.D. Washington, 2025
Ramos-Rodriguez v. Commissioner of Social Security
91 F. Supp. 3d 232 (D. Puerto Rico, 2015)
Padilla-Gomez v. Commissioner of Social Security
88 F. Supp. 3d 14 (D. Puerto Rico, 2015)
Agostini-Cisco v. Commissioner of Social Security
31 F. Supp. 3d 342 (D. Puerto Rico, 2014)
Baerga-Suárez v. United States
30 F. Supp. 3d 91 (D. Puerto Rico, 2014)
Olmeda v. Astrue
16 F. Supp. 3d 23 (D. Puerto Rico, 2014)
Sanchez-Ortiz v. Commissioner of Social Security
995 F. Supp. 2d 53 (D. Puerto Rico, 2014)
Camacho v. Astrue
978 F. Supp. 2d 116 (D. Puerto Rico, 2013)
Suarez-Linares v. Commissioner of Social Security
962 F. Supp. 2d 372 (D. Puerto Rico, 2013)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
854 F. Supp. 2d 176, 2012 WL 1242306, 2012 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 51989, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/rodriguez-gonzalez-v-astrue-prd-2012.