Gossett v. Barnhart ( 2005 )

F I L E D
United States Court of Appeals
Tenth Circuit
UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS
MAY 19 2005
FOR THE TENTH CIRCUIT
PATRICK FISHER
Clerk
BENJAMIN SPENCER GOSSETT,
Plaintiff - Appellant,
v. No. 04-7105
(D.C. No. 04-CV-214-W)
JO ANNE B. BARNHART, (E. D. Okla.)
Defendant - Appellee.
ORDER AND JUDGMENT *
Before BRISCOE , ANDERSON , and BRORBY , Circuit Judges.
After examining the briefs and appellate record, this panel has determined
unanimously that oral argument would not materially assist the determination of
this appeal. See Fed. R. App. P. 34(a)(2); 10th Cir. R. 34.1(G). The case is
therefore ordered submitted without oral argument.
*
This order and judgment is not binding precedent, except under the
doctrines of law of the case, res judicata, and collateral estoppel. The court
generally disfavors the citation of orders and judgments; nevertheless, an order
and judgment may be cited under the terms and conditions of 10th Cir. R. 36.3.
Benjamin Spencer Gossett, proceeding pro se, appeals the district court’s
dismissal of his complaint. Mr. Gossett was denied social security disability
benefits. He then filed a civil action in the Eastern District of Oklahoma
challenging that denial. The district court dismissed the action on the ground that
Mr. Gossett failed to file his complaint within sixty days following the presumed
receipt of the notice of the Appeals Council decision denying his benefits. We
affirm.
The district court dismissed Gossett’s complaint in response to defendant’s
motion to dismiss. 1
In ruling on a motion to dismiss, the district court is limited
to the facts pled in the complaint. Burnham v. Humphrey Hospitality Reit Trust
Inc. , 403 F.3d 709, 713 (10th Cir. 2005). In this case, the district court went
outside of the complaint and relied on facts contained in an affidavit and exhibits
attached to defendant’s motion to dismiss, thereby converting the motion to
dismiss into a motion for summary judgment. In so doing, the district court failed
to give proper notice to the parties that it was converting the motion. If, however,
1
Defendant argued before the district court that it was moving to dismiss for
lack of subject matter jurisdiction because the court lacks jurisdiction to review a
case filed outside of the sixty-day time period under 42 U.S.C. § 405(g). This
statement is incorrect. In Flores v. Sullivan , a case cited to us by the defendant,
the Fifth Circuit recognized that “[t]he Supreme Court has held that the sixty-day
time period in section 405(g) represents a statute of limitation instead of a
jurisdictional bar.” 945 F.2d 109, 113 (5th Cir. 1991) (citations omitted).
Accordingly, we will treat the defendant’s motion as a 12(b)(6) motion to dismiss
as opposed to a 12(b)(1) motion to dismiss.
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a party is not prejudiced by the conversion, then this court may proceed with its
appellate review relying upon summary judgment standards. Id.
Although no notice was given in this case, Mr. Gossett was not prejudiced
by the conversion of the motion to dismiss into a motion for summary judgment.
Mr. Gossett responded to the motion to dismiss and he had the opportunity to
present evidence to rebut the defendant’s evidence. We will therefore review the
district court’s dismissal as a grant of summary judgment. Summary judgment is
appropriate “if the pleadings, depositions, answers to interrogatories, and
admissions on file, together with the affidavits, if any, show that there is no
genuine issue as to any material fact and that the moving party is entitled to
judgment as a matter of law.” Fed. R. Civ. P. 56(c).
In Mr. Gossett’s complaint he states that “[t]he written determination of the
Appeals Council was not provided to plaintiff or to his representatives in
accordance with applicable regulations.” R., Doc. 1 at ¶ 9. Attached to
defendant’s motion is a declaration from an employee in the Social Security
Administration who reviewed Mr. Gossett’s file. Her review indicated that the
letter informing Mr. Gossett of the Appeals Council’s denial was mailed on
April 18, 2002 (a copy of the letter with that date is also attached) and that there
had been no request for an extension of time to file a civil action. R., Doc. 10,
Att. at 3. Under the social security regulations, a claimant is presumed to receive
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the notice of the decision of the Appeals Council five days after the date of
mailing of such notice, unless there is a reasonable showing to the contrary. 20
C.F.R. § 422.210(c). A claimant must file a civil action in district court within 60
days of the receipt of the notice, unless good cause is shown for an extension. Id.
Mr. Gossett did not file his civil action until May 6, 2004, over two years after
the notice was sent and presumably received.
In Mr. Gossett’s response to the motion to dismiss, he simply repeats the
same vague information from his complaint “that [he] was not notified of the
[Appeals Council] decision in the manner required by regulation.” R., Doc. 14 at
1. He does not provide any more detailed information to support this conclusory
allegation. He then goes on to state that “repeated written and oral attempts to
obtain a copy of the decision were ignored.” Id. Again, however,
Mr. Gossett fails to support this statement with any kind of a detailed recitation of
the factual circumstances of when and how he attempted to obtain copies of the
decision; facts that are exclusively within his control. Conclusory allegations are
insufficient to raise a genuine issue of material fact. Peck v. Horrocks Engineers,
Inc. , 106 F.3d 949, 956 (10th Cir. 1997). Mr. Gossett has not produced any
evidence to rebut the defendant’s evidence that notice of the Appeals Council
decision was sent on April 18, 2002 and that Mr. Gossett did not contact the
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Social Security Administration to request an extension of time to file his civil
action. The district court did not err in dismissing Mr. Gossett’s complaint.
Liberally construing Mr. Gossett’s pro se appellate brief, it also appears as
though he is challenging the district court’s decision to grant an extension of time
for the defendant to file its motion to dismiss and the decision to deny his motion
for default judgment. We conclude that the district court did not abuse its
discretion in granting the defendant’s request for an extension of time to file its
motion to dismiss, see Fed. R. Civ. P. 6(b), or in denying Mr. Gossett’s motion
for default judgment, see Olcott v. Delaware Flood Co. , 327 F.3d 1115, 1124
(10th Cir. 2003).
The judgment of the district court is AFFIRMED. Mr. Gossett’s motion to
proceed in forma pauperis is GRANTED.
Entered for the Court
Wade Brorby
Circuit Judge
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