Gerard M. v. Kijakazi

Background

Gerard M. sought judicial review under 42 U.S.C. § 405(g) of the Commissioner of Social Security’s decision denying his application for benefits. The opinion states in its opening that the application was for supplemental security income, but its procedural history states that Gerard M. filed an application for Disability Insurance Benefits. The Administrative Law Judge found that Gerard M. was not disabled after determining that he could perform his past relevant work as a buyer as that occupation is generally performed.

Gerard M. had worked for Treasure Hunters Roadshow from 2009 to 2011. He bought and appraised gold, silver, antiques, coins, and other goods; packaged purchases; arranged shipments; traveled between locations; and helped set up and take down booths and equipment. He testified that some boxes weighed 20 to 55 pounds, some goods weighed 15 pounds or more, and some equipment or luggage weighed up to 100 pounds.

The Administrative Law Judge determined that Gerard M. could perform light work with restrictions, including lifting or carrying 20 pounds occasionally and 10 pounds frequently, limited climbing and other postural activities, and no overhead reaching. The judge found that he could not perform the buyer job as he actually performed it because of its heavier lifting requirements, but could perform buyer work as described in the Dictionary of Occupational Titles.

Arguments

Gerard M. argued that his past job was a composite job—a job containing significant elements of two or more occupations—from buyer and merchandise displayer. He argued that the job therefore had to be evaluated at the higher exertional level and that, because he could not perform medium work, the Administrative Law Judge should have proceeded to the next step of the disability evaluation.

The Commissioner argued that the job was not composite because Gerard M. did not perform significant duties of the merchandise-displayer occupation.

Court’s Analysis

The court explained that a composite job has significant elements of two or more occupations and cannot be evaluated as a single occupation listed in the Dictionary of Occupational Titles. A claimant must be able to perform all parts of a composite job to be found capable of performing it at the past-work stage.

The court found that the buyer and merchandise-displayer occupations were distinct. Buyer work involves purchasing and appraising merchandise and arranging transportation of purchases. Merchandise-displayer work involves creating and arranging displays to attract customers to merchandise offered for sale.

The court concluded that Gerard M.’s testimony matched many aspects of buyer work, including purchasing goods, using knowledge to assess their value, transporting purchases, and arranging shipment. The court also agreed that the weight of the goods meant he could not perform the job as he actually performed it, but found substantial evidence supporting the conclusion that he could perform buyer work as generally performed.

The court further concluded that Gerard M.’s travel and booth setup and teardown did not make the job composite. Neither occupation expressly included his regular travel, so the court treated that travel as work beyond the usual buyer duties. Although setting up and taking down the booth was superficially similar to some merchandise-displayer duties, Gerard M. was not creating displays to sell merchandise. He was setting up a booth and equipment to buy goods from others, and he did not display or sell merchandise. The court therefore determined that these duties were extra buyer duties rather than significant elements of merchandise-displayer work.

Disposition

The court held that the Administrative Law Judge did not err by failing to treat Gerard M.’s past work as a composite job and that the buyer classification was supported by substantial evidence. The court denied Gerard M.’s Motion for Summary Judgment and granted the Commissioner’s Motion for Summary Judgment. The court ordered judgment to be entered accordingly.