Opinion
CIVIL ACTION NO. 13-404-JJB
03-23-2015
LANCE JONES v. MICHAEL J. ASTRUE, COMMISSIONER OF SOCIAL SECURITY ADMINISTRATION
RULING
The court has carefully considered the complaint, the record, the law applicable to this action, and the Report and Recommendation of United States Magistrate Judge Stephen C. Riedlinger dated March 4, 2015 (doc. no. 13). The court has additionally considered the objection (doc. 14) filed by plaintiff.
The gist of plaintiff's objection is that the ALJ applied the wrong legal standard in rejecting the medial opinion of plaintiff's treating psychiatrist. The court finds that this argument was amply and correctly addressed in the magistrate judge's report, doc. 13, pp. 8-15. This court has consistently held that the Fifth Circuit jurisprudence does not always require the ALJ to consider each of the § 404.1527(d) factors. In this case, there is competing first-hand medical evidence and the ALJ was free to find that one doctor's opinion was more well-founded than another. See e.g., Atwell v. Commissioner of Social Sec. Admin., 2015 WL 757601 (M.D. La. 2015); Harrell v. Colvin, 2015 WL 965745 (M.D. La. 2015). The court hereby approves the report and recommendation of the magistrate judge and adopts it as the court's opinion herein.
Accordingly, under sentence four of 42 U.S.C. § 405(g) the final decision of the Acting Commissioner of Social Security denying the application for disability income benefits filed by plaintiff Lance Jones is hereby AFFIRMED and this action will be DISMISSED.
Baton Rouge, Louisiana, this 23rd of March, 2015.
/s/_________
JAMES J. BRADY
UNITED STATES DISTRICT JUDGE