Damien M Ainsworth v. Nancy A. Berryhill

Background

This order addressed Ainsworth’s counsel’s request for attorney fees under 42 U.S.C. § 406(b), a provision allowing a court to approve a reasonable fee for an attorney who represented a Social Security claimant in court. The fee may not exceed 25% of the claimant’s past-due benefits. In the earlier stage of this case, the court granted Ainsworth’s summary-judgment motion in part, remanded the case for further agency proceedings, and entered judgment for him.

After the remand, Ainsworth received $96,634.60 in past-due Disability Insurance Benefits. The Social Security Administration withheld an additional $31,679.00 for attorney fees, making the total past-due benefits $128,313.60. Twenty-five percent of that total was $32,078.40. Ainsworth’s contingent-fee agreement allowed a fee of up to 25% of past-due benefits, and counsel requested $29,555.05, or 23.03% of the benefits.

The court had previously approved $4,555.05 in fees under the Equal Access to Justice Act (EAJA), a law that can require the government to pay fees to a party who successfully litigates against it. When both EAJA fees and § 406(b) fees are awarded, the attorney must refund the EAJA amount to the claimant. Counsel agreed that the $4,555.05 had to be refunded, so the requested § 406(b) fee would result in a net fee of $25,000 after the refund.

Court’s Analysis

The court reviewed the contingent-fee agreement and independently evaluated whether the requested fee was reasonable. It found no indication that counsel’s performance was inadequate or that counsel delayed the proceedings to increase the fee. The court also considered counsel’s reported 22.3 hours of work, which produced an effective hourly rate of $1,325.34, and found that rate reasonable under the circumstances.

The court concluded that counsel had obtained an excellent result, had undertaken a substantial risk of not being paid, and had performed substantial work. It found that the requested fee did not create an improper windfall.

Disposition

Judge Beth Labson Freeman granted counsel’s motion for attorney fees under § 406(b) in the amount of $29,555.05. The order also required that Ainsworth be refunded the previously awarded $4,555.05 in EAJA fees.