Mack v. Commissioner of Social Security

Background

Magistrate Judge Cave had recommended granting Reathie Mack’s motion for judgment on the pleadings in part, denying the Commissioner’s cross-motion in its entirety, and sending the Social Security case back to the administrative law judge for further proceedings. Judge Ronnie Abrams adopted that recommendation after finding no clear error.

Mack then moved for attorney’s fees and costs under the Equal Access to Justice Act, a federal law allowing a qualifying party to recover reasonable litigation expenses from the government. She initially requested $12,771 for 60.6 hours of attorney work. After responding to the government’s opposition, she increased the request to $13,296, including an additional 2.5 hours.

Parties’ positions

The government did not challenge Mack’s attorney’s hourly rate. It argued only that 60.6 hours was excessive because the case was routine and exceeded a typical benchmark of 20 to 40 hours. Mack argued that the time was reasonable because the administrative record contained 2,733 pages.

Court’s analysis

The court explained that a reasonable fee generally starts with the number of hours reasonably spent multiplied by a reasonable hourly rate. It also noted that time spent preparing and defending an Equal Access to Justice Act fee motion may be included in the award.

Although courts often treat 20 to 40 hours as reasonable in typical Social Security cases, the court said that greater hours may be justified by the facts of a particular case. It relied on decisions awarding more than 40 hours when the administrative record was unusually lengthy. The court found that the 2,733-page record supported the reasonableness of the 60.6 hours spent on the underlying case and the additional 2.5 hours spent on the fee motion.

Disposition

The court granted Mack’s motion for attorney’s fees and costs in the amount of $13,296.00.