Amanda Black v. Frank Bisignano, Commissioner of Social Security

Summary

This order concerns Amanda Black’s action under 42 U.S.C. § 405(g) seeking review of the Commissioner of Social Security’s denial of supplemental security income benefits. The court evaluates challenges to the ALJ’s treatment of Black’s subjective symptom testimony and the opinion of her mental-health counselor. The court concludes that the ALJ did not provide sufficiently specific, clear, and convincing reasons to discount Black’s testimony concerning her physical impairments, but reasonably evaluated the counselor’s opinion as unpersuasive. The provided text ends during the discussion of vocational-expert testimony.

Holdings

1. The ALJ failed to provide specific, clear, and convincing reasons supported by substantial evidence for discounting Black's testimony about the severity and limiting effects of her physical impairments.
2. The ALJ reasonably found Leslie Brown's mental-health opinion unpersuasive because it was inadequately supported and not entirely consistent with other evidence.
3. Because the ALJ inadequately evaluated Black's physical symptom testimony, the error may have affected the RFC and vocational-expert hypothetical, undermining the evidentiary value of the step-five finding.
4. Remand for further administrative proceedings, rather than an immediate award of benefits, was appropriate.

Questions Presented

1. Whether the ALJ provided legally sufficient, specific, clear, and convincing reasons supported by substantial evidence for discounting Black's subjective testimony concerning the severity and limiting effects of her physical impairments.
2. Whether the ALJ properly evaluated the persuasiveness of licensed clinical social worker Leslie Brown's mental-health opinion under the amended Social Security regulations.
3. Whether the ALJ's vocational-expert hypothetical and resulting step-five determination were supported when the ALJ inadequately evaluated Black's physical symptom testimony.
4. Whether the case should be remanded for further proceedings or for an immediate award of benefits.

Disposition

reversed_and_remanded