Ortiz v. Commissioner of Social Security
- Alison Nathan
- 1:20-cv-05715
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 4
Ortiz v. Commissioner of Social Security: Judge Nathan granted Ortiz’s fee motion, awarding $14,424 after reducing requested hours for unjustified status calls.
George Ortiz receives a $14,424 attorneys’ fee award, while the Government is affected by the award of fees for the Social Security litigation.
What happened
In Ortiz v. Commissioner of Social Security, George Ortiz had already won a remand for further administrative proceedings in his Social Security case. He then asked for reimbursement of his attorneys’ fees and costs.
The Government agreed that Ortiz qualified for fees and did not challenge the hourly rate, but argued that 64 hours of attorney work was excessive. Ortiz responded that the case involved a 2,146-page administrative record and complex issues, and also requested fees for preparing his reply.
Judge Alison J. Nathan granted Ortiz’s motion and awarded $14,424. The award covered 66.5 hours of attorney work at $216 per hour and 0.6 hours of paralegal work at $100 per hour, after deducting 1.5 hours for repeated, unjustified status-update calls.
The detailed version
- Ortiz v. Commissioner of Social Security · No. 1:20-cv-05715
- Alison Nathan
- July 13, 2022
Background
A magistrate judge previously recommended granting George Ortiz’s request for judgment on the pleadings and denying the Government’s motion. The court adopted that recommendation and remanded the case for further administrative proceedings. Ortiz then moved for attorneys’ fees and costs under the Equal Access to Justice Act, a federal law that can require the Government to reimburse a prevailing party for reasonable litigation expenses.
The Fee Request
Ortiz initially requested $13,884 for 64 hours of attorney work at $216 per hour and 0.6 hours of paralegal work at $100 per hour. In reply, he also sought compensation for four hours spent preparing the reply brief, increasing the request to $14,748 for 68 hours of work.
The parties agreed that Ortiz was a prevailing party, that his motion was timely, and that the requested $216 hourly rate was reasonable. The Government did not object to the 0.6 hours of paralegal work. Its only objection was that 64 hours of attorney work was excessive because courts in the circuit often use about 40 hours as a guideline for routine Social Security appeals.
Court’s Analysis
The court explained that 40 hours is a guideline, not a strict maximum. More time may be reasonable when the administrative record is unusually long or the issues are especially complex. The court found those circumstances present here because the record contained 2,146 pages, Ortiz had received permission to exceed the ordinary page limit for his brief, and the earlier report and recommendation was 17 pages long.
The court also considered that Ortiz’s attorney had substantial experience and had represented Ortiz during much of the administrative proceedings. It concluded that these facts did not justify reducing the request. The court likewise rejected the Government’s argument that some older medical records were irrelevant, noting that the earlier decision appropriately relied on those materials.
The court did reduce the request by 1.5 hours for repeated and unjustified status-update calls, finding that those calls provided little additional benefit to Ortiz.
Disposition
The court granted Ortiz’s motion and awarded $14,424. The award covered 66.5 hours of attorney work at $216 per hour, totaling $14,364, plus 0.6 hours of paralegal work at $100 per hour, totaling $60. The opinion states that this ruling resolved docket number 30.
Read the full 4-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.