Malone v. O'Malley

Background

Travis J. Malone filed a complaint under 42 U.S.C. § 405(g), which permits judicial review of a Social Security benefits decision. He challenged the Social Security Commissioner’s denial of his claim for Supplemental Security Income. The court referred the case to Magistrate Judge Henry J. Ricardo for a report and recommendation concerning any motion for judgment on the pleadings, a motion asking the court to decide the case based on the parties’ written submissions.

Report and Recommendation

Malone moved for judgment on the pleadings. Judge Ricardo issued a report and recommendation advising the court to grant the motion and remand the case to the Social Security Commissioner for further proceedings. Neither party filed a timely objection. Because there were no timely objections, Judge Oetken reviewed the recommendation for clear error—an obvious mistake on the face of the record.

Ruling

Judge Oetken found no clear error and fully adopted Judge Ricardo’s report and recommendation. Under sentence four of 42 U.S.C. § 405(g), the court granted Malone’s motion for judgment on the pleadings and remanded the case to the Commissioner for further proceedings. The clerk was directed to close the case.