Marilyn House v. Carolyn W. Colvin

MEMORANDUM

Marilyn House argues that the district court abused its discretion, Harman v. Apfel, 211 F.3d 1172, 1174 (9th Cir.2000), in remanding her claim to the ALJ for further proceedings rather than for an award of benefits. We affirm.

1.It is not disputed that House suffered from fibromyalgia, lumbar spine degenerative disc disease, osteoarthritis of the hands, and diverticulitis. The question is whether these conditions were severe enough to prevent work and, if so, when they grew severe enough to render House disabled.

We agree with the district court’s conclusion that the ALJ failed to offer legally sufficient reasons for discrediting Dr. Fair-fax, House’s treating physician, and for adopting the opinion of Dr. Disney, who did not examine House. We also agree with the district court that the ALJ failed to offer legally sufficient reasons for rejecting House’s testimony about her symptoms. Finally, we agree with the district court’s conclusion that these errors were not harmless, as the ALJ acknowledged that if Fairfax or House were credited, the ALJ would be required to find that House was disabled, and then to calculate and award benefits.

2. As we explain in Garrison…