Dixon v. Berryhill
- Haywood Gilliam
- 4:18-cv-03483
- U.S. District Court · Northern District of California
- 3
In Dixon v. Berryhill, Judge Gilliam approved the parties’ agreement awarding Terrance Dixon $5,600 in Equal Access to Justice Act attorney fees.
Terrance Dixon, his counsel and Homeless Action Center, and the government were affected by the attorney-fee order.
What happened
In Dixon v. Berryhill, Terrance Dixon and the government agreed to settle Dixon’s request for attorney fees under the Equal Access to Justice Act.
The agreement provides for $5,600 covering legal services in the case. The fees are payable to Dixon, but the government may pay Homeless Action Center directly if the Treasury Department finds that Dixon does not owe a federal debt. The agreement does not admit government liability and preserves counsel’s ability to seek fees under another Social Security law provision.
Judge Haywood S. Gilliam, Jr. approved the stipulation and ordered the agreed fee award.
The detailed version
- Dixon v. Berryhill · No. 4:18-cv-03483
- Haywood Gilliam
- Nov. 19, 2019
Background
Terrance Dixon and the government submitted a stipulation concerning Dixon’s request for attorney fees under the Equal Access to Justice Act (EAJA), 28 U.S.C. § 2412(d). The caption identifies Andrew Saul as the Commissioner of Social Security and states that he was automatically substituted for the prior Commissioner.
Agreement
The parties agreed that Dixon would receive $5,600 for all legal services provided by his counsel in connection with the civil action. The agreement states that the award is a compromise settlement and is not an admission of liability by the government under the EAJA or otherwise.
The fees are to be made payable to Dixon. If the Treasury Department determines that Dixon does not owe a federal debt subject to an offset, the government is to make the payment directly to Homeless Action Center under Dixon’s assignment. Payment of the agreed amount will release and bar claims relating to EAJA fees in this action. The agreement is without prejudice to counsel’s and Homeless Action Center’s ability to seek attorney fees under 42 U.S.C. § 406(b), subject to the EAJA’s savings-clause provisions.
Ruling
Judge Haywood S. Gilliam, Jr. ordered: “Pursuant to stipulation, IT IS SO ORDERED.” The court therefore approved the parties’ agreed $5,600 EAJA attorney-fee award.
Read the full 3-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.