Jawad

ORDER GRANTING IN PART AND DENYING IN PART PLAINTIFF’S MOTION FOR ATTORNEY’S FEES

On November 23, 2004, the Court granted Plaintiffs motion for summary judgment and found that Plaintiff is disabled and .entitled to social security benefits. The Court concluded that the decision of the Administrative Law Judge (ALJ), upholding the Commissioner’s denial of benefits, was erroneous and not supported by substantial evidence in the record. On February 15, 2005, Plaintiff timely filed a motion for attorney’s fees. The government contends that the amount of attorney’s fees requested should be reduced.

I. Discussion

Under the Equal Access to Justice Act (“EAJA”), the 'prevailing party, other than the United States, is entitled to attorney’s fees unless the government’s position was substantially justified or special circumstances exist that render the award of fees unjust. 28 U.S.C. § 2412 (d)(1)(A). Plaintiff satisfies the statutory criteria and is therefore entitled to an award of attorney’s fees.

A. Prevailing Party

As a threshold issue, the Court finds that Plaintiff is a “party” within the meaning of § 2412 because his net worth did not exceed $2,000,000.00 at the time the action…