Brickel v. Saul
- Kenneth Karas
- 7:20-cv-11033
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 4
In Brickel v. Kijakazi, Judge Karas granted in part a request for Social Security attorney’s fees, ordering $12,866.78 paid and an Equal Access to Justice Act fee refunded.
Mary Dianne Brickel, her attorney Christopher J. Bowes, and the Social Security Administration defendant were affected. The order required payment of $12,866.78 to Brickel’s counsel and a direct refund of $2,700 to Brickel.
What happened
In Brickel v. Kijakazi, Mary Dianne Brickel sought review of the Social Security Administration’s denial of her applications for Disabled Adult Child benefits and Supplemental Security Income. After the case was sent back for further proceedings, an administrative law judge found that she was disabled and entitled to benefits.
Brickel’s lawyer asked for $12,866.78 in attorney’s fees from her past-due benefits. The request was made under a law allowing fees for work performed in federal court, and the agency had withheld that amount for a possible fee award. A magistrate judge recommended granting the request in part, and neither side objected.
Judge Kenneth M. Karas adopted the recommendation in full and granted Brickel’s motion for attorney’s fees in part. He ordered the defendant to pay Brickel’s lawyer $12,866.78 and directed the lawyer to refund $2,700 in previously awarded Equal Access to Justice Act fees directly to Brickel.
The detailed version
- Brickel v. Saul · No. 7:20-cv-11033
- Kenneth Karas
- Oct. 6, 2023
Background
Mary Dianne Brickel filed claims for Disabled Adult Child benefits and Supplemental Security Income. The Social Security Administration initially denied her claims, and an administrative law judge later found that she was not disabled. The Appeals Council declined review, making that decision the agency’s final decision.
Brickel then challenged the decision in the Southern District of New York through attorney Christopher J. Bowes. The parties agreed to send the case back for further administrative proceedings. The court also previously approved $2,700 in attorney’s fees under the Equal Access to Justice Act, a federal law that can allow a party to recover fees from the government for litigation.
After the case was sent back, an administrative law judge found that Brickel had been disabled as of July 10, 2015, and entitled to benefits on her applications. The Social Security Administration issued a notice awarding her monthly benefits of $890 beginning in March 2017. It withheld $12,866.78, representing 25 percent of her past-due benefits, for a possible attorney-fee request under 42 U.S.C. § 406(b).
Fee motion and recommendation
Brickel sought an attorney-fee award equal to the amount withheld, subject to the earlier $2,700 Equal Access to Justice Act award. Magistrate Judge Andrew E. Krause issued a Report and Recommendation on April 12, 2023, recommending that the fee motion be granted in part. Neither party objected.
Because there were no objections, Judge Karas reviewed the recommendation for clear error. He reviewed the recommendation and Brickel’s motion and found no substantive error.
Ruling
Judge Karas adopted the Report and Recommendation in its entirety. He granted Brickel’s motion for attorney’s fees in part and ordered the defendant to pay Christopher J. Bowes $12,866.78. He also directed Bowes to refund the previously awarded $2,700 in Equal Access to Justice Act fees directly to Brickel. The clerk was directed to terminate the pending motions.
Read the full 4-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.