Rose v. Commissioner of Social Security Administration, 2:16-cv-00298

Plaintiff Nicholas Rose applied for DIB on Nov 6, 2013 alleging disability beginning Aug 1, 2013; applications were denied and ALJ found him not disabled after a July 8, 2015 hearing.
Appeals Council denied review, so ALJ’s decision became final and Rose sued under 42 U.S.C. § 405(g).
Rose argued the ALJ erred in weighing medical opinion evidence, improperly discounting VA disability rating, and at step five of the sequential evaluation.
The Court vacated and remanded because the ALJ failed to provide persuasive, specific, and valid reasons for rejecting the VA’s 100% disability rating documenting total occupational and social impairment for major depressive disorder and generalized anxiety disorder.
The Court found the ALJ’s error was not harmless and that the Commissioner’s defense of the procedural error was not substantially justified, making Rose the prevailing party under the EAJA.
Plaintiff requested $7,013.55 in attorney fees and $420.25 in costs; the Government did not contest amount or hours and the Court found the request reasonable.

Issue	Plaintiff's Argument	Defendant's Argument	Held
Whether the ALJ properly rejected the VA’s 100% disability rating	VA rating should be given weight; ALJ failed to provide valid reasons for rejection	ALJ gave no weight because rating lacked supporting explanation	Court: ALJ erred — failed to articulate persuasive, specific, valid reasons and improperly dismissed VA findings
Whether ALJ’s error was harmless	Error affected outcome; not harmless	Error was inconsequential to nondisability finding	Court: Error was not harmless; reversal and remand required
Whether the Commissioner’s defense was substantially justified for EAJA purposes	N/A (plaintiff seeks fees)	Government defended ALJ’s decision on appeal	Court: Government’s defense of procedural error was not substantially justified; plaintiff prevails under EAJA
Whether requested EAJA fees and costs are reasonable	Requested $7,013.55 fees and $420.25 costs; supported by contemporaneous records	Government did not contest amount/hours	Court: Fees and costs reasonable; award granted payable to plaintiff (subject to offset)

McCartey v. Massanari, 298 F.3d 1072 (9th Cir. 2002) (ALJ must provide specific, legitimate reasons to reject VA disability rating)
Pierce v. Underwood, 487 U.S. 552 (Sup. Ct. 1988) (definition of "substantially justified" for EAJA)
Shafer v. Astrue, 518 F.3d 1067 (9th Cir. 2008) (EAJA analysis focuses on justification for defending procedural errors when reversal is procedural)
Corbin v. Apfel, 149 F.3d 1051 (9th Cir. 1998) (government’s position must have reasonable basis in law and fact under EAJA)
Molina v. Astrue, 674 F.3d 1104 (9th Cir. 2012) (harmless error standard in Social Security cases)
Hensley v. Eckerhart, 461 U.S. 424 (Sup. Ct. 1983) (standards for reasonableness of attorney fee awards)