Ferrer v. Social Security
- 7:20-cv-03428-VR
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 6
In Ferrer v. Commissioner of Social Security, the court granted counsel’s fee motion, awarded $12,559.50, and ordered a $4,332.59 refund.
Wilson Ferrer and his attorneys, Daniel Jones and Charles Binder. The order authorizes counsel to receive $12,559.50 in fees from Ferrer’s past-due benefits and requires counsel to refund Ferrer $4,332.59 in previously awarded fees.
What happened
In Ferrer v. Commissioner of Social Security, Wilson Ferrer’s lawyers asked for fees under a federal law governing payment for representing Social Security claimants in court. Ferrer had initially been denied benefits, but the case was sent back for further proceedings, and he was later found disabled and awarded benefits.
The lawyers requested $12,559.50, about 25% of Ferrer’s past-due benefits. The Social Security Administration did not support or oppose the request. The court reviewed whether the request was timely and reasonable, including whether the fee exceeded the legal limit, resulted from unfair conduct, or would be an improper windfall.
The court found the request timely and reasonable and granted the motion. The court awarded counsel $12,559.50 and ordered counsel to promptly refund Ferrer the previously awarded $4,332.59 in government-paid fees.
The detailed version
- Ferrer v. Social Security · No. 7:20-cv-03428-VR
- Feb. 8, 2024
Background
Wilson Ferrer applied for Social Security Disability benefits and Supplemental Security Income benefits, alleging that his disability began on December 1, 2015. An administrative law judge initially found him not disabled, and the Social Security Administration’s Appeals Council denied review.
Ferrer then filed this federal case. The parties agreed to send the case back to the Social Security Administration for further proceedings, and the court entered judgment remanding the matter. The court later awarded $4,332.59 in attorney’s fees under the Equal Access to Justice Act, a law that can permit fees when a party prevails against the government and the government’s position was not substantially justified.
After the remand, an administrative law judge found Ferrer disabled as of July 18, 2016. A benefits notice stated that $12,559.50—approximately 25% of Ferrer’s past-due benefits—was being withheld for attorney’s fees. Ferrer’s retainer agreement allowed his counsel to receive up to 25% of past-due benefits if the federal court remanded the case and he received benefits.
Fee request and analysis
Ferrer’s counsel, Daniel Jones and Charles Binder, requested $12,559.50 under 42 U.S.C. § 406(b), which authorizes a court to award a reasonable fee for an attorney’s representation in federal court, subject to a 25% limit on past-due benefits. The Social Security Administration neither supported nor opposed the request.
The court found the request timely because counsel filed it 13 days after the benefits notice. The court then considered whether the fee was reasonable. It found that the request did not exceed the 25% limit, and it found no evidence of fraud or overreaching.
Counsel reported 20.6 hours of work, producing a calculated hourly rate of $609.68. The court concluded that this did not constitute an improper windfall because Jones and Binder were experienced Social Security practitioners, had handled thousands of such cases, had represented Ferrer for years, and had efficiently achieved a favorable result. The court also found that counsel had not caused unreasonable delay.
Disposition
The court granted the motion for attorney’s fees and awarded counsel $12,559.50. Upon receiving that award, counsel was ordered to promptly refund Ferrer $4,332.59, representing the earlier Equal Access to Justice Act fee award. The clerk was asked to close the fee-motion docket entry.
Read the full 6-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.