United States District Court, M.D. Alabama, Northern Division
MEMORANDUM OPINION AND ORDER
GRAY
M. BORDEN UNITED STATES MAGISTRATE JUDGE.
Plaintiff
Anita Tomlinson Smith filed this action on March 9, 2016,
seeking judicial review of a final adverse decision of the
Commissioner of Social Security denying her application for a
period of disability and disability insurance benefits under
Title II of the Social Security Act. Doc. 1. Smith applied
for disability benefits with an alleged onset date of
December 31, 2009. Her application was denied at the initial
administrative level. Smith then requested and received a
hearing before an Administrative Law Judge
(“ALJ”) on February 26, 2015. Following that
hearing, the ALJ denied Smith's claims. The Appeals
Council rejected a subsequent request for review, making the
ALJ's decision the final decision of the Commissioner of
Social Security (the
“Commissioner”).[1]
With
briefing complete, this case is now ripe for review pursuant
to 42 U.S.C. § 405(g). The parties have consented to the
entry of a final judgment by the undersigned United States
Magistrate Judge pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 636(b), Rule 73
of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, and Rule 73.1 of the
Local Rules for the United States District Court for the
Middle District of Alabama. Docs. 7 & 8. Based upon a
review of the evidentiary record, the parties' briefs,
and the relevant legal authority, the court finds that the
Commissioner's decision is due to be AFFIRMED.
I.
STANDARD OF REVIEW
The
court reviews a social security case to determine whether the
Commissioner's decision “is supported by
substantial evidence and based upon proper legal
standards.” Lewis v. Callahan, 125 F.3d 1436,
1439 (11th Cir. 1997). The court “may not decide the
facts anew, reweigh the evidence, or substitute its judgment
for that of the Commissioner, ” but rather it
“must defer to the Commissioner's decision if it is
supported by substantial evidence.” Miles v.
Chater, 84 F.3d 1397, 1400 (11th Cir. 1997) (internal
quotation marks omitted). Indeed, the court must affirm the
Commissioner's decision “if it is supported by
substantial evidence and the correct legal standards were
applied.” Kelly v. Apfel, 185 F.3d 1211, 1213
(11th Cir. 1999) (citing Graham v. Apfel, 129 F.3d
1420, 1422 (11th Cir. 1997)).
“Substantial
evidence is more than a scintilla-i.e., the evidence must do
more than merely create a suspicion of the existence of a
fact, and must include such relevant evidence as a reasonable
person would accept as adequate to support the
conclusion.” Jones ex rel. T.J.J. v. Astrue,
2011 WL 1706465, at *1 (M.D. Ala. May 5, 2011) (citing
Lewis, 125 F.3d at 1440). The court must scrutinize
the entire record to determine the reasonableness of the
decision reached. Hale v. Bowen, 831 F.2d 1007, 1010
(11th Cir. 1987). “If the Commissioner's decision
is supported by substantial evidence, the district court will
affirm, even if the court would have reached a contrary
result as a finder of fact, and even if the court finds that
the evidence preponderates against the Commissioner's
decision.” Jones, 2011 WL 1706465, at *2
(citing Edwards v. Sullivan, 937 F.2d 580, 584 n.3
(11th Cir. 1991)). The court will reverse the
Commissioner's decision on plenary review if the decision
applies incorrect law, or if the decision fails to provide
the court with sufficient reasoning to determine that the
Commissioner properly applied the law. Cornelius v.
Sullivan, 936 F.2d 1143, 1145-46 (11th Cir. 1991);
Jones, 2011 WL 1706465, at *2 (citing Keeton v.
Dep't of Health & Human Servs., 21 F.3d 1064,
1066 (11th Cir. 1994)). There is no presumption that the
Commissioner's conclusions of law are valid. Id.
II.
STATUTORY AND REGULATORY FRAMEWORK
To
qualify for disability benefits, a claimant must show the
“inability to engage in any substantial gainful
activity by reason of any medically determinable physical or
mental impairment which can be expected to result in death or
which has lasted or can be expected to last for a continuous
period of not less than 12 months.” 42 U.S.C. §
423(d)(1)(A); 42 U.S.C. § 416(i). A physical or mental
impairment is “an impairment that results from
anatomical, physiological, or psychological abnormalities
which are demonstrated by medically acceptable clinical and
laboratory diagnostic techniques.” 42 U.S.C. §
423(d)(3). Smith bears the burden of proving that she is
disabled, and she is responsible for producing evidence to
support her claim. See Ellison v. Barnhart, 355 F.3d
1272, 1276 (11th Cir. 2003).
Determination
of disability under the Social Security Act requires a
five-step analysis. 20 C.F.R. § 404.1520(a).
Specifically, the Commissioner must determine in sequence:
(1) Is the claimant presently unemployed?
(2) Is the claimant's impairment severe?
(3) Does the claimant's impairment meet or equal one of
the specific impairments set forth in 20 C.F.R. Pt. 404,
Subpt. P, App. 1?
(4) Is the claimant unable to perform his or her former
occupation?
(5) Is the claimant unable to perform any other work within
...