Hines v. Colvin

Background

Anthony Dawayne Hines appealed the Social Security Administration’s denial of disability benefits based on a combination of mental and physical impairments, including severe hip pain and depression. On July 31, 2017, the court granted Hines’s motion for summary judgment, denied the Commissioner’s cross-motion for summary judgment, and sent the case back for further proceedings.

The court later awarded Hines’s counsel $3,500 under the Equal Access to Justice Act, a federal law allowing certain fee awards against the government. After the proceedings on remand, Hines was notified that he had been awarded disability benefits for 2011 through 2015 and was owed $118,425 in past-due benefits. The Social Security Administration withheld $29,606.25 from that award for attorney’s fees and had already paid counsel $6,000 for work performed before the agency.

Counsel then sought $23,606.25 under 42 U.S.C. § 406(b) for work performed in federal court. The contingency-fee agreement allowed counsel to seek up to 25 percent of Hines’s past-due benefits, including the $6,000 already paid for agency work. Hines supported the request, and the Commissioner took no position on whether the requested amount was reasonable.

Legal standard

Section 406(b) permits a court to approve a reasonable attorney-fee award in a Social Security case that produces a favorable result for the claimant. The award cannot exceed 25 percent of the claimant’s past-due benefits. The court must independently review a contingency-fee agreement to ensure that the resulting fee is reasonable.

The court may consider whether the lawyer provided inadequate representation, delayed the case to increase the fee, sought an amount excessive in relation to the benefits obtained, or accepted substantial risk by taking the case. Any Section 406(b) award must also be reduced by fees previously awarded under the Equal Access to Justice Act.

Court’s analysis

The court found the requested $23,606.25 reasonable. The fee agreement stayed within the 25-percent statutory limit. The court found no indication of inadequate performance or delay designed to increase fees. It also found that counsel had performed substantial work and achieved a favorable result by obtaining a remand, and that the requested fee was not excessive compared with the $118,425 in past-due benefits.

The court also found that counsel had assumed substantial risk because the contingency agreement was made before the case was filed, when counsel did not know whether the court would order a remand or whether the representation would produce past-due benefits.

Disposition

The court granted counsel’s motion for attorney’s fees under Section 406(b). The Commissioner was directed to certify $23,606.25, payable to the Law Offices of Katherine Siegfried. Counsel was ordered to refund the previously awarded $3,500 in Equal Access to Justice Act fees to Hines.