Leffingwell v. Commissioner of Social Security ( 2023 )

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT NORTHERN DISTRICT OF NEW YORK ______________________________________________ SCOTT L., Plaintiff, v. 6:21-CV-1289 (FJS/DEP) COMMISSIONER OF SOCIAL SECURITY, Defendant. _______________________________________________ APPEARANCES OF COUNSEL OFFICE OF PETER W. ANTONOWICZ PETER W. ANTONOWICZ, ESQ. 148 West Dominick Street Rome, New York 13440 Attorneys for Plaintiff SOCIAL SECURITY ADMINISTRATION CANDACE LAWRENCE, ESQ. OFFICE OF GENERAL COUNSEL VERNON NORWOOD, ESQ. 6401 Security Boulevard Baltimore, Maryland 21235 Attorneys for Defendant SCULLIN, Senior Judge ORDER Plaintiff brought this action pursuant to 42 U.S.C. § 405(g) seeking review of Defendant's final decision that he was not disabled at the relevant times and, therefore, was ineligible for the disability insurance ("DIB") benefits for which he had applied. See Dkt. No. 1. The parties filed motions for judgment on the pleadings on May 19, 2022, and July 12, 2022. See Dkt. No. 11 (Plaintiff's motion); Dkt. No. 14 (Defendant's motion). Magistrate Judge Peebles issued a Report and Recommendation on December 7, 2022, see Dkt. No. 17, to which neither party filed any objections. In his Report and Recommendation, Magistrate Judge Peebles recommended that the Court (1) affirm Defendant's decision; (2) grant Defendant's motion for judgment on the pleadings, see Dkt. No. 14; (3) deny Plaintiff's motion for judgment on the pleadings, see Dkt. No. 11; and (4) dismiss Plaintiff's complaint. See Dkt. No. 17 at 20. When a party does not object to a magistrate judge's report-recommendation, the court reviews that report-recommendation for clear error or manifest injustice." Young v. Polizzi, No. 9:16-CV-660, 2018 WL 3949942, *1 (N.D.N.Y. Aug. 16, 2018) (quoting Ward v. Lee, No. 9:16- CV-1224, 2018 WL 3574872, *1 (N.D.N.Y. July 25, 2018) (citation omitted)). "After conducting this review, "the Court may ‘accept, reject, or modify, in whole or in part, the... recommendations made by the magistrate judge." /d. (quotation omitted). The Court has reviewed Magistrate Judge Peebles' December 7, 2022 Report and Recommendation for clear error and manifest injustice; and, finding none, the Court hereby ORDERS that Magistrate Judge Peebles’ December 7, 2022 Report and Recommendation, see Dkt. No. 17, is ACCEPTED in its entirety for the reasons stated therein; and the Court further ORDERS that Plaintiff's motion for judgment on the pleadings, see Dkt. No. 11, is DENIED; and the Court further ORDERS that Defendant's motion for judgment on the pleadings, see Dkt. No. 14, is GRANTED; and the Court further ORDERS that the Clerk of the Court shall enter judgment in favor of Defendant and close this case. IT IS SO ORDERED. / A ° Dated: January 6, 2023 Freder&k J. @cullin, Jr. Syracuse, New York Senior United States District Judge