Price v. Commissioner of Social Security
- James Oetken
- 1:19-cv-08499-JPO
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 4
In Price v. Commissioner of Social Security, Judge Oetken granted Price’s fee motion and awarded $12,608.02 under the Equal Access to Justice Act.
Bobette Price received the court-ordered EAJA fee award, while the Commissioner of Social Security’s objection to the number of billed hours was rejected.
What happened
Price v. Commissioner of Social Security is a Social Security appeal in which the court had previously granted Bobette Price’s motion for judgment on the pleadings and sent the matter back for further administrative proceedings.
Price then asked for attorney’s fees under the Equal Access to Justice Act. The Commissioner did not challenge Price’s eligibility for reasonable fees or the proposed hourly rates, but argued that the number of hours was excessive for a routine Social Security case.
Judge J. Paul Oetken granted Price’s motion and awarded $12,608.02. The award covered 60.4 hours of attorney work at $208 per hour and 0.5 hours of paralegal work at $90 per hour, based largely on the size of the 1,551-page administrative record.
The detailed version
- Price v. Commissioner of Social Security · No. 1:19-cv-08499-JPO
- James Oetken
- May 18, 2022
Background
The court had previously granted Bobette Price’s motion for judgment on the pleadings in her Social Security appeal and remanded the matter to the Commissioner of Social Security for further administrative proceedings. Price then moved for attorney’s fees under the Equal Access to Justice Act (EAJA), a federal law that can require the government to pay reasonable litigation fees when a claimant qualifies for an award.
The Fee Request
Price’s counsel initially sought $12,088.20, based on 57.9 hours of attorney work at $208 per hour and 0.5 hours of paralegal work at $90 per hour. The Commissioner did not dispute that Price’s counsel was entitled to reasonable fees and costs under the EAJA, and did not challenge the proposed hourly rates. The Commissioner challenged only the number of hours, arguing that 20 to 40 hours would be reasonable for what it viewed as a routine Social Security case.
To receive EAJA fees, a claimant must be the party who prevailed, the government’s position must not have been substantially justified, no special circumstances must make an award unfair, and the application must be timely and supported by an itemized statement. The opinion states that the Commissioner did not dispute Price’s entitlement to reasonable fees and costs.
Court’s Analysis
The court agreed that some factors could support reducing the hours, including counsel’s experience and representation of Price during the administrative proceedings. But it found the billed hours reasonable because the administrative record was particularly large—1,551 pages. The court also noted that counsel did not receive the certified administrative record until after the Commissioner filed its answer. It concluded that counsel’s experience would not substantially reduce the time needed to review the record and prepare a comprehensive statement of facts and arguments with record citations.
The court therefore approved 60.4 hours of attorney time: 57.9 hours for work through the fee application and 2.5 hours for preparing a reply to the Commissioner’s opposition. It also approved 0.5 hours of paralegal time.
Ruling
Judge J. Paul Oetken granted Price’s motion for attorney’s fees and awarded $12,608.02. The award consisted of 60.4 attorney hours at $208 per hour and 0.5 paralegal hours at $90 per hour. The Clerk of Court was directed to close the fee motion at Docket Number 20.
Read the full 4-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.