Robles v. Kijakazi

Full title: LADAWN BENCIA ROBLES, Plaintiff, v. KILOLO KIJAKAZI, Defendant.

Court: United States District Court, Eastern District of California

Date published: Jan 3, 2023

1:22-cv-00598-HBK (E.D. Cal. Jan. 3, 2023)

Opinion

1:22-cv-00598-HBK

01-03-2023

LADAWN BENCIA ROBLES, Plaintiff, v. KILOLO KIJAKAZI, Defendant.

HELENA M. BARCH-KUCHTA, UNITED STATES MAGISTRATE JUDGE

ORDER GRANTING PARTIES' STIPULATED MOTION TO REMAND UNDER SENTENCE FOUR OF 42 U.S.C. § 405(G), REVERSING FINAL DECISION AND REMANDING CASE ¹

1 Both parties have consented to the jurisdiction of a magistrate judge, in accordance with 28 U.S.C. §636(c)(1). (Doc. No. 10).

(DOC. NO. 15)

ORDER MOOTING PLAINTIFF'S MOTION FOR SUMMARY JUDGMENT

(DOC. NO. 12)

HELENA M. BARCH-KUCHTA, UNITED STATES MAGISTRATE JUDGE

Pending before the Court is the parties' joint motion to remand filed December 20, 2022. (Doc. No. 15). Plaintiff Ladawn Bencia Robles and the Commissioner of Social Security agree that this case should be remanded for further administrative proceedings under sentence four of 42 U.S.C. § 405(g). (Id.).

The United States Supreme Court held that the Social Security Act permits remand in conjunction with a judgment either affirming, reversing, or modifying the Secretary's decision. See Melkonyan v. Sullivan, 501 U.S. 89, 97-98 (1991) (addressing issue of attorney's fees under the Equal Access to Justice Act and calculating deadline using date of final judgment). The Melkonyan court recognized 42 U.S.C. § 405(g) contemplates only two types of remand -sentence four or sentence six. Id. at 98. A sentence four remand authorizes a court to enter “a judgment affirming, modifying, or reversing the decision of the Secretary, with or without resetting the cause for a rehearing.” Id. (other citations omitted).

The Court grants the parties' joint motion to remand under sentence four and reverses the Commissioner's final decision. This matter is remanded for further administrative proceedings. Upon remand, the ALJ shall offer the claimant the opportunity for a new hearing, re-evaluate the evidence of record and issue a new decision. (Doc. No. 15 at 1-2).

Accordingly, it is ORDERED:

1. Pursuant to sentence four of 42 U.S.C.§ 405(g), the Court grants the joint motion to remand (Doc. No. 15) and REVERSES the Commissioner's decision. This case is REMANDED to the Commissioner of Social Security for further review.

2. An application for attorney fees may be filed by separate motion.

3. Plaintiff's Motion for Summary Judgment (Doc. No. 12) is MOOT.

4. The Clerk shall enter judgment in favor of Plaintiff, terminate any deadlines, and close this case.