Cabrera v. Commissioner of Social Security
- Gabriel Gorenstein
- 1:20-cv-03883
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 1
In Cabrera v. Commissioner, Judge Gorenstein granted counsel’s fee motion, awarding $8,252.75 under federal Social Security law.
Plaintiff Prisilla Jasmine Cabrera and her attorney, Howard David Olinsky, were affected. Olinsky received a $8,252.75 fee award from past-due benefits and was ordered to refund Cabrera $5,971.85 previously paid under the Equal Access to Justice Act.
What happened
In Cabrera v. Commissioner of Social Security, the court considered the plaintiff’s lawyer’s request for fees after past-due benefits had been awarded to the plaintiff.
The court found that the fee request was reasonable. It cited the lawyer’s Social Security expertise and efficient work, the uncertainty of the case’s outcome, and the importance of encouraging lawyers to accept Social Security cases based on contingent fees.
Judge Gorenstein granted the fee motion and awarded Howard David Olinsky $8,252.75 under federal Social Security law, to be paid from the past-due benefits withheld by the Commissioner. Within seven days after receiving the award, Olinsky must refund the plaintiff $5,971.85 previously paid under the Equal Access to Justice Act.
The detailed version
- Cabrera v. Commissioner of Social Security · No. 1:20-cv-03883
- Gabriel Gorenstein
- July 11, 2024
Background
The order addresses the attorney-fee application filed by counsel for Prisilla Jasmine Cabrera. The opinion does not describe the underlying Social Security dispute or the amount of past-due benefits, but it states that the Commissioner of Social Security withheld part of those benefits for payment of the fee award.
Reasoning
The court applied the reasons stated in Blizzard v. Astrue and concluded that the factors courts use to assess whether attorney fees are reasonable—including factors identified by the Court of Appeals in Fields v. Kijakazi—were satisfied. The court relied on counsel’s expertise in Social Security matters, counsel’s efficient work, the fact that the case was not a certain win, and the importance of encouraging attorneys to accept Social Security cases on a contingency-fee basis. It concluded that the requested award was not excessive compared with the hours counsel worked and therefore did not require reduction.
Ruling
The court ordered the following:
- The motion of the plaintiff’s counsel for attorney fees, Docket No. 31, was granted. - Howard David Olinsky was awarded $8,252.75 in fees under 42 U.S.C. § 406(b), a provision governing fees for representation in Social Security court proceedings. The award is to be paid from the past-due benefits withheld by the Commissioner. - Within seven days after receiving the award, Olinsky must refund $5,971.85 to Cabrera. That amount represents attorney fees previously awarded and received under the Equal Access to Justice Act, a federal fee-shifting statute.
The order was entered by United States Magistrate Judge Gabriel W. Gorenstein.
Read the full 1-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.