(SS) Cortez v. Commissioner of Social Security ( 2022 )

1 FORSLUND LAW, LLC Jacqueline A. Forslund # 154575 2 P.O. Box 4476 Sunriver, OR 97707 3 Telephone: 541-419-0074 4 Fax: 541-593-4452 Email: jaf@forslundlaw.com 5 Attorney for Plaintiff 6 7 UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT EASTERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA 8 VIRGINIA CORTEZ, ) Case No. 1:21-CV-00829-BAM 9 ) 10 Plaintiff ) STIPULATION AND PROPOSED ) ORDER FOR AWARD OF ATTORNEY’S 11 v. ) FEES UNDER THE EQUAL ACCESS TO ) JUSTICE ACT (EAJA) 12 KILOLO KIJAKAZI, ) 13 Acting Commissioner of Social Security, ) ) 14 Defendant ) ) 15 ____________________________________) 16 IT IS HEREBY STIPULATED by and between the parties through their undersigned counsel, 17 subject to the approval of the Court, that Plaintiff shall be awarded attorney’s fees under the Equal 18 Access to Justice Act (EAJA), 28 U.S.C. sec. 2412(d), in the amount of EIGHT THOUSAND NINE 19 HUNDRED AND EIGHTY-THREE dollars and SEVENTEEN cents ($8,983.17). This amount 20 represents compensation for all legal services rendered on behalf of Plaintiff by counsel in connection 21 with this civil action, in accordance with 28 U.S.C. sec. 2412(d). 22 After the Court issues an order for payment of EAJA fees and expenses to Plaintiff, the government will consider the matter of Plaintiff’s assignment of EAJA fees and expenses to 23 Plaintiff’s attorney. The government’s ability to honor the assignment will depend on whether the 24 fees and expenses are subject to an offset allowed under the United States Department of the 25 Treasury’s Offset Program pursuant to Astrue v. Ratcliff, 130 S.Ct. 2521 (2010). After the order of 26 EAJA fees and expenses is entered, the government will determine if they are subject to an offset. If 27 it is determined that Plaintiff’s EAJA fees and expenses are not subject to an offset under Astrue v. 28 Ratcliff, 130 S.Ct. 2521 (2010) and the Department of Treasury’s Offset Program, then the check for 1 EAJA fees and expenses shall be made payable to Jacqueline A. Forslund, based upon Plaintiff’s 2 assignment of these amounts to Plaintiff’s attorney. The parties agree that whether these checks are made payable to Plaintiff or Jacqueline A. Forslund, such checks shall be mailed to Plaintiff’s 3 attorney. This stipulation constitutes a compromise settlement of Plaintiff’s request for EAJA 4 attorney fees, and does not constitute an admission of liability on the part of Defendant under the 5 EAJA or otherwise. Payment of the agreed amount shall constitute a complete release from, and bar 6 to, any and all claims that Plaintiff and/or Plaintiff’s Counsel may have relating to EAJA attorney 7 fees in connection with this action. 8 9 Respectfully submitted, 10 Date: October 12, 2022 JACQUELINE A. FORSLUND Attorney at Law 11 12 /s/Jacqueline A. Forslund 13 JACQUELINE A. FORSLUND Attorney for Plaintiff 14 15 Date: October13, 2022 PHILLIP A. TALBERT United States Attorney 16 MATTHEW W. PILE Regional Chief Counsel, Region X 17 Social Security Administration 18 /s/Katherine B. Watson 19 KATHERINE B. WATSON Special Assistant United States Attorney 20 *By email authorization 21 Attorney for Defendant 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 1 ORDER 2 Based on the parties’ Stipulation for Award of Attorney’s Fees under the Equal Access to 3 Justice Act (EAJA) (the “Stipulation”), IT IS ORDERED that fees and expenses in the amount of 4 Eight Thousand Nine Hundred Eighty-Three dollars and Seventeen cents ($8,983.17) as authorized 5 by EAJA, 28 U.S.C. § 2412(d), be awarded subject to the terms of the Stipulation. 6 7 IT IS SO ORDERED. 8 Dated: October 14, 2022 /s/ Barbara A. McAuliffe _ 9 UNITED STATES MAGISTRATE JUDGE 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28