Bridges v. O'Malley

EASTERN DISTRICT OF MISSOURI SOUTHEASTERN DIVISION BRYAN BRIDGES, ) ) Plaintiff, ) ) v. ) Case No. 1:24-cv-00014-SNLJ ) MARTIN O’MALLEY, ) Commissioner of Social Security, ) ) ) Defendant. ) MEMORANDUM AND ORDER This is an action under 42 U.S.C. § 405 (g) for judicial review of Defendant’s final decision denying Plaintiff’s application for benefits under the Social Security Act. Currently pending is Defendant’s Motion to Reverse and Remand (Doc. 17.) In his motion, Defendant requests that the Court reverse the decision of the administrative law judge (“ALJ”) and remand this action to Defendant pursuant to sentence four of 42 U.S.C. § 405 (g). Defendant states that, after careful review of the abovecaptioned case, agency counsel determined that remand was necessary for further evaluation of Plaintiff’s claim. Defendant indicates that, upon remand, the Appeals Council will remand the case to the ALJ for further evaluation of the evidence. Plaintiff has filed a Response stating he has no objection and joins in the request that the Court reverse and remand this matter in accordance with Defendant’s motion (Doc. 18) Sentence four of 42 U.S.C. § 405 (g) states that “[t]he court shall have power to enter, upon the pleadings and transcript of the record, a judgment affirming, modifying, or reversing the decision of the Commissioner of Social Security, with or without remanding the cause for a rehearing.” Therefore, to properly remand a case to the Commissioner pursuant to sentence four, the Court must enter an order either affirming, modifying, or reversing the Commissioner’s decision. See Brown v. Barnhart, 282 F.3d 580, 581 (8th Cir. 2002). The undersigned believes that it is appropriate to reverse and remand this case to permit the Commissioner to take further action as requested in his motion. ACCORDINGLY, IT IS HEREBY ORDERED that Defendant’s Motion to Reverse and Remand (Doc. 17) is GRANTED. IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that the decision of the Commissioner is REVERSED, and this cause is REMANDED to the Commissioner for further proceedings pursuant to sentence four of 42 U.S.C. § 405 (g) for the reasons set forth in this Memorandum and Order. A separate written Judgment will be entered. Dated this 18th day of September, 2024. STEPHEN N. LIMBAUGH, JR. SENIOR UNITED STATES DISTRICT JUDGE