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Wednesday, January 07, 2015
Ind. Decisions – 7th Circuit decides one Indiana case today, reversing decision of SSA and District Court
In Daniel Minnick v. Carolyn Colvin (ND Ind., Van Bokkelen), an 18-page opinion, Judge Bauer writes:
Plaintiff-Appellant, Daniel P. Minnick (“Minnick”), suffers from a number of serious medical problems, including fibromyalgia, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (“COPD”), and degenerative disc disease. In 2010, he applied for disability insurance benefits under the Social Security Act. After the Disability Determination Bureau (“DDB”) denied Minnick’s claim in December 2010, Minnick requested an administrative hearing before an Administrative Law Judge (“ALJ”). The ALJ determined that Minnick is not disabled within the meaning of the Social Security Act. The Appeals Council denied Minnick’s request for review, rendering the ALJ’s decision final. 20 C.F.R. § 404.981. Minnick then sought review in the district court, which affirmed the ALJ’s decision on September 27, 2013. We conclude that the ALJ made a number of errors in her consideration of the record and therefore reverse and remand Minnick’s case for further proceedings. * * *
Our task is to determine whether substantial evidence supports the ALJ’s conclusion. We believe that it does not. For the reasons discussed above, we REVERSE the judgment of the district court upholding the Acting Commissioner’s decision to deny benefits to Minnick and REMAND for further proceedings consistent with this opinion.
Posted by Marcia Oddi on January 7, 2015 07:37 PM
Posted to Ind. (7th Cir.) Decisions