Gutierrez v. Commissioner of Social Security
- Laura Swain
- 1:24-cv-06670
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 2
Gutierrez v. Commissioner of Social Security: Judge Swain transferred the benefits-review case to the Eastern District of New York because venue was improper.
Ana Emelisa Gutierrez’s Social Security benefits-review case was transferred from the Southern District of New York to the Eastern District of New York; the merits of her benefits claim were not decided.
What happened
In Gutierrez v. Commissioner of Social Security, Ana Emelisa Gutierrez, representing herself, asked for review of a Social Security benefits decision. She alleged that she lived in Bay Shore, Suffolk County, New York.
The Southern District of New York ruled that the case belonged in the Eastern District of New York because Social Security law generally permits this type of case in the district where the plaintiff lives, and Suffolk County is in the Eastern District. The court transferred the action rather than deciding the benefits dispute.
Judge Laura Taylor Swain directed the clerk to transfer the case, left the decision on fee-free filing to the receiving court, and ordered that no summons issue from the Southern District. The order closed the case in that court and denied fee-free appeal status.
The detailed version
- Gutierrez v. Commissioner of Social Security · No. 1:24-cv-06670
- Laura Swain
- Sept. 11, 2024
Background
Ana Emelisa Gutierrez filed a self-represented action seeking judicial review under the Social Security Act of the Commissioner of Social Security’s decision concerning her application for Social Security benefits. The opinion notes that her complaint and application to proceed without prepaying filing fees were unsigned.
Venue ruling
The court explained that actions under 42 U.S.C. §§ 405(g) and 1383(c)(3) may be filed in the federal district where the plaintiff resides or has a principal place of business, or, if the plaintiff has neither in a federal district, in the District of Columbia. Gutierrez alleged that she resided in Bay Shore, in Suffolk County, New York, and did not allege a principal place of business. Because her residence was outside the Southern District of New York, the court found that venue was improper there. Suffolk County falls within the Eastern District of New York.
Disposition
Under 28 U.S.C. § 1406(a), the court directed the clerk to transfer the action to the United States District Court for the Eastern District of New York. The receiving court will decide whether Gutierrez may proceed without prepaying fees. The Southern District ordered that no summons issue from that court and stated that the transfer order closed the action there. The court also certified that any appeal would not be taken in good faith and denied fee-free status for an appeal. The opinion did not decide whether Gutierrez is entitled to Social Security benefits.
Read the full 2-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.