Gaoee T. v. Kijakazi
- John Docherty
- 0:22-cv-01992
- U.S. District Court · District of Minnesota
- 4
In Gaoee T. v. O’Malley, Judge Docherty granted $19,625 in federal-court attorney’s fees and ordered counsel to refund $3,816.55 to Gaoee T.
Gaoee T. receives the approved refund of $3,816.55, while David L. Christianson and Wes Kappelman receive payment for their federal-court services from the withheld past-due benefits.
What happened
In Gaoee T. v. Martin O’Malley, Gaoee T. challenged the denial of disability benefits. The court previously reversed that decision and sent the matter back to the Social Security Administration, which later awarded her benefits.
Her attorneys requested $19,625 for 15.7 hours of work in federal court under a fee agreement providing for 25% of her past-due benefits. The Social Security Administration had withheld $37,069 for representatives’ fees. Her attorneys did not seek payment for their work before the agency.
Judge John F. Docherty granted the fee motion. He authorized payment of $19,625 to David L. Christianson from the withheld benefits and ordered counsel to pay Gaoee T. the $3,816.55 previously awarded under the Equal Access to Justice Act.
The detailed version
- Gaoee T. v. Kijakazi · No. 0:22-cv-01992
- John F. Docherty
- Aug. 5, 2024
Background
Gaoee T. was denied disability benefits and filed a federal case challenging the Social Security Commissioner’s final decision. She retained Wes Kappelman and David L. Christianson under a contingency-fee agreement. The agreement required payment of 25% of her past-due benefits if she succeeded in appealing the Commissioner’s decision.
In an earlier order, the court reversed the Commissioner’s decision and remanded the matter to the Social Security Administration. The court also awarded Gaoee T. $3,816.55 in attorney’s fees under the Equal Access to Justice Act. After the remand, the Social Security Administration determined that she qualified for disability benefits and withheld $37,069 from her past-due benefits to pay her representatives.
Fee request
Counsel sought $19,625 under 42 U.S.C. § 406(b) for 15.7 hours of work in federal court. They did not seek fees through this motion for work performed before the Social Security Administration. The requested amount averaged $1,250 per hour.
Section 406(b) allows a court to approve a reasonable attorney-fee award from a claimant’s past-due benefits, subject to a limit of 25% of those benefits. The court must independently review a contingency-fee arrangement and may reduce the requested amount if counsel performed poorly, caused unnecessary delay, or requested a fee that was too large compared with the time spent. An attorney cannot keep both an Equal Access to Justice Act award and a Section 406(b) award; the attorney must refund the smaller award to the claimant.
Ruling
The court found the requested fee reasonable and granted Gaoee T.’s motion for attorney’s fees under Section 406(b). Although the hourly average appeared high, the court found no indication that counsel performed poorly or caused unnecessary delay. It also found that the requested award was not so large compared with the time spent that a reduction was required.
The court authorized payment of $19,625 to David L. Christianson from the amount withheld from Gaoee T.’s past-due benefits for federal-court services. Upon receiving the payment, counsel must remit $3,816.55 directly to Gaoee T., representing the amount previously awarded under the Equal Access to Justice Act. Christianson will also distribute Wes Kappelman’s share of the award.
Read the full 4-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.