Rodriguez v. Colvin
- Paul Gardephe
- 1:16-cv-01226
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 3
In Rodriguez v. Colvin, Judge Gardephe granted a lawyer-fee motion and directed a $14,354.50 payment in a Social Security case.
Jesus Rodriguez, Attorney Christopher James Bowes, and the Social Security Administration were affected. The Social Security Administration was directed to approve a net payment of $14,354.50 to Bowes.
What happened
In Rodriguez v. Colvin, the plaintiff asked the court to approve a contingent-fee payment to his attorney under the Social Security Act. The Commissioner did not oppose the request.
A magistrate judge recommended granting the request. Neither party objected, so the court reviewed the recommendation for clear error and found none.
Judge Gardephe adopted the recommendation in full, granted the motion, directed the Social Security Administration to approve a net payment of $14,354.50 to Attorney Christopher James Bowes, and closed the case.
The detailed version
- Rodriguez v. Colvin · No. 1:16-cv-01226
- Paul Gardephe
- Jan. 2, 2020
Background
Jesus Rodriguez moved under Section 206(g) of the Social Security Act, 42 U.S.C. § 406(b), for approval of a contingent-fee arrangement in his Social Security case. The Commissioner did not object. The district court referred the motion to Magistrate Judge Barbara C. Moses, who recommended granting it.
The opinion notes that Nancy A. Berryhill was substituted for former Acting Commissioner Carolyn W. Colvin under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 25(d).
Review of the Recommendation
Judge Moses’s report and recommendation gave the parties fourteen days to object and warned that failing to object would waive further judicial review. Neither party filed an objection. The court stated that judicial review had therefore been waived, but it independently reviewed the recommendation and found no clear error on the face of the record.
Ruling
The court adopted Judge Moses’s report and recommendation in its entirety. It granted Rodriguez’s motion and directed the Social Security Administration to approve a net payment of $14,354.50 to Attorney Christopher James Bowes. The clerk was directed to terminate the motion and close the case.
Read the full 3-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.