Kow Nai S. v. O'Malley

Summary

The United States District Court for the Northern District of California reviews the Commissioner of Social Security’s decision finding Plaintiff not disabled from October 2, 2012 through October 31, 2015. The court holds that the ALJ failed to provide specific, clear, and convincing reasons for discounting Plaintiff’s testimony concerning wrist, shoulder, and back pain, resulting in unsupported RFC and Step Five findings. The court grants Plaintiff’s motion for summary judgment, denies the Commissioner’s cross-motion, and remands for further proceedings rather than an immediate award of benefits.

Holdings

1. The ALJ failed to provide specific, clear, and convincing reasons for rejecting Plaintiff's testimony concerning his shoulder, back, and wrist pain. The ALJ improperly inferred that pain became manageable from a treatment gap, relied on examination findings that did not contradict pain testimony, and failed to account for Plaintiff's prior unsuccessful wrist treatments.
2. The ALJ provided legally sufficient reasons for discounting Plaintiff's testimony concerning foot numbness before November 2015.
3. The RFC and step-five findings were not supported by substantial evidence because they rested in significant part on the ALJ's legally erroneous evaluation of Plaintiff's testimony.
4. A direct award of benefits was not warranted because outstanding factual and vocational issues remained regarding the appropriate handling restrictions, other RFC limitations, and the resulting step-five analysis.

Questions Presented

1. Whether the ALJ's residual functional capacity finding was supported by substantial evidence.
2. Whether the ALJ provided legally sufficient, specific, clear, and convincing reasons for rejecting portions of Plaintiff's subjective symptom testimony.
3. Whether the ALJ's step-five finding was supported by substantial evidence.
4. Whether the record required a direct award of benefits under the credit-as-true rule or instead required remand for further proceedings.

Disposition

reversed_and_remanded