Jennifer W. v. Bisignano
- Dulce Foster
- 0:24-cv-04127
- U.S. District Court · District of Minnesota
- 2
In Jennifer W. v. Bisignano, Judge Foster approved a joint agreement for the government to pay $14,150 in attorney's fees under the Equal Access to Justice Act.
Individuals who have won Social Security appeals and are seeking attorney's fees from the government under the Equal Access to Justice Act, as well as attorneys who represent such clients and may be affected by federal debt-offset rules governing how fee payments are made.
What happened
In Jennifer W. v. Frank Bisignano, Commissioner of Social Security, the plaintiff Jennifer W. and the government reached a joint agreement on attorney's fees after Jennifer W. won her Social Security case. The parties agreed — without needing the court to decide — that the government would pay $14,150 in attorney's fees under the Equal Access to Justice Act (EAJA), a federal law that allows courts to order the government to pay a winning party's legal fees in certain cases.
The fee payment comes with conditions drawn from a Supreme Court decision: if Jennifer W. owes any preexisting debt to the federal government, that debt may be deducted from the fee award before payment is made. If no such debt exists and the government waives a separate federal contracting rule, the fees will be paid directly to her attorney, J. Asha Sharma. If a debt does exist, any remaining funds after the offset will be paid by check to Jennifer W. herself.
Magistrate Judge Dulce J. Foster approved the joint agreement and ordered the government to pay $14,150 in attorney's fees. Because the agreement resolved everything, an earlier motion for attorney's fees that Jennifer W. had filed before the parties met to negotiate was denied as moot — meaning there was no longer anything left for the court to decide on that motion.
The detailed version
- Jennifer W. v. Bisignano · No. 0:24-cv-04127
- Dulce J. Foster
- Feb. 20, 2026
Background
This is a Social Security appeal in which the plaintiff, Jennifer W. (identified by first name and last initial per the District of Minnesota's policy for nongovernmental parties in Social Security matters), challenged a decision by the Commissioner of Social Security. After the case resolved in her favor, the parties addressed attorney's fees under the Equal Access to Justice Act (EAJA), 28 U.S.C. § 2412(d)(1)(A), which authorizes courts to award attorney's fees against the federal government when the government's position in litigation was not substantially justified.
Procedural History
Before meeting and conferring with government counsel, Jennifer W. filed a motion for attorney's fees (ECF No. 32). The parties subsequently met, conferred, and filed a Joint Stipulation for EAJA Fees (ECF No. 36), agreeing to a fee amount of $14,150. The stipulation mooted the earlier standalone motion.
The Court's Rulings
Approval of the Stipulation
Magistrate Judge Foster approved the Joint Stipulation based on the parties' agreement and Jennifer W.'s supporting documents (ECF Nos. 34-2, 34-3, 34-4). The court ordered the government to pay $14,150 in attorney's fees.
Offset and Payment Mechanics
Citing Astrue v. Ratliff, 560 U.S. 586 (2010), the court noted that EAJA fees are subject to offset for any preexisting debt the plaintiff owes the United States under the Treasury Offset Program. The payment structure is as follows:
- If the Commissioner determines Jennifer W. does not owe an offsettable debt and agrees to waive the Anti-Assignment Act's requirements, fees will be paid directly to her attorney, J. Asha Sharma. - If a debt subject to offset exists, the Commissioner cannot waive the Anti-Assignment Act, and any remaining fees after the offset will be paid by check made out to Jennifer W. herself.
Regardless of to whom the check is made out, all checks are to be delivered to attorney J. Asha Sharma at the address specified in the order in Saint Paul, Minnesota.
Motion for Attorney's Fees
Because the Joint Stipulation resolved the issues raised in the earlier motion for attorney's fees (ECF No. 32), the court denied that motion as moot.
Key Statute
The Equal Access to Justice Act, 28 U.S.C. § 2412(d)(1)(A), authorizes fee awards against the federal government in civil actions where the government's position was not substantially justified. Here, however, the court approved a stipulated fee without reaching a contested justification analysis.
Note on Party Anonymization
The opinion states that the District of Minnesota uses only the first name and last initial of nongovernmental parties in Social Security orders. "Jennifer W." is the court's chosen identifier for the plaintiff; her full surname does not appear in the opinion.
Read the full 2-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.