Cucchiarelli v. Heckler

Summary

The court considered plaintiff’s counsel’s application for attorney’s fees under 42 U.S.C. § 406(b)(1) following a remand in a Social Security disability benefits action. The court determined that counsel’s district-court services reasonably warranted a $3,400 fee, but initially limited the award because of an erroneous calculation of the claimant’s past-due benefits. In an amended order, the court vacated the $704.15 award and awarded counsel $3,400.00, the balance remaining within the statutory 25 percent limitation after administrative-level fees.

Holdings

1. The aggregate attorney's fees awarded for administrative and court representation may not exceed 25 percent of the claimant's past-due benefits under 42 U.S.C. § 406.
2. A reasonable fee under § 406(b) must be determined from the circumstances of the representation, including time and labor, difficulty, skill, experience, benefit obtained, customary fees, and the contingency or certainty of compensation.
3. The court may not automatically award the statutory maximum or enforce a contingency-fee agreement; it must independently determine the reasonable fee under § 406(b).
4. After counsel corrected the amount of past-due benefits, the court vacated its prior $704.15 award and awarded counsel $3,400.00 for district-court services.

Questions Presented

1. What attorney's fee is reasonable for counsel's representation of a Social Security claimant before the district court under 42 U.S.C. § 406(b)(1)?
2. Whether the aggregate fees awarded by the Secretary and the district court may exceed 25 percent of the claimant's past-due benefits.
3. Whether the court should enforce the claimant's contingency-fee agreement or automatically award the statutory maximum.

Disposition

vacated