Paula A. v. O'Malley
- Katherine Menendez
- 0:22-cv-02358
- U.S. District Court · District of Minnesota
- 4
In Paula A. v. O’Malley, Judge Menendez granted two fee motions, awarding $19,620.10 under Section 406(b) after a $7,250.40 EAJA reduction.
Paula A. and her counsel, concerning attorney fees paid under the Equal Access to Justice Act and from Paula A.’s past-due Social Security benefits.
What happened
In Paula A. v. O’Malley, the court had previously sent Paula A.’s Social Security case back to the agency for further proceedings. An administrative law judge later found her disabled and awarded her $107,482.00 in past-due benefits.
Paula A.’s lawyer requested fees under the Equal Access to Justice Act and separately under a federal law allowing fees from past-due Social Security benefits. A magistrate judge recommended $7,250.40 in Equal Access to Justice Act fees and $502.00 in costs, and recommended a $26,870.50 fee from the past-due benefits, reduced by the Equal Access to Justice Act award.
Judge Katherine Menendez accepted both recommendations and granted Paula A.’s two fee motions. The court awarded $26,870.50 under the benefits-fee law, reduced that amount by $7,250.40, and ordered a net fee of $19,620.10 to be paid from Paula A.’s past-due benefits.
The detailed version
- Paula A. v. O'Malley · No. 0:22-cv-02358
- Katherine Menendez
- Oct. 22, 2024
Background
The court had previously adopted a magistrate judge’s recommendation and remanded Paula A.’s Social Security case to the Social Security Administration for further proceedings. On remand, an administrative law judge found Paula A. disabled. Her notice of award stated that she was entitled to $107,482.00 in past-due benefits, with 25 percent—$26,870.50—being withheld for an approved attorney fee.
Fee requests
Paula A.’s counsel filed a motion under the Equal Access to Justice Act, a law that can require the government to pay reasonable attorney fees in qualifying cases. Counsel initially sought $9,348.00 for 41 hours of work at $228 per hour, $502.00 in costs, and an additional $1,140.00 for time spent litigating the fee request. Magistrate Judge Dulce J. Foster recommended an award of $7,250.40 in attorney fees and $502.00 in costs. Neither party objected.
After the favorable agency decision, counsel filed a second motion under 42 U.S.C. § 406(b), which governs attorney fees paid from a claimant’s past-due Social Security benefits. Counsel sought the full 25 percent withheld from the benefits, or $26,870.50, reduced by the recommended Equal Access to Justice Act fee of $7,250.40. The requested net amount was $19,620.10.
Ruling
Because neither party objected, the court reviewed both recommendations for clear error. It found the requested fee award fair and reasonable, agreed that the Equal Access to Justice Act fee was reasonable, and agreed that counsel should receive a fee under Section 406(b) reduced by the Equal Access to Justice Act amount.
Judge Menendez accepted both of Magistrate Judge Foster’s recommendations and granted Paula A.’s two attorney-fee motions. The court awarded $26,870.50 under Section 406(b), reduced that award by $7,250.40, and ordered a net total fee of $19,620.10 to be paid from Paula A.’s past-due benefits.
Read the full 4-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.