Gerald McAllister v. Louis W. Sullivan

In the district court, Gerald McAllister sought review of a decision of the Secretary of Health and Human Services denying his application for Social Security disability benefits. He claimed that the administrative law judge (“AU”) improperly rejected the opinion of his treating physician. The district court granted summary judgment for the Secretary, affirming the administrative decision. McAllister appeals. We remand for further proceedings.

FACTS AND PROCEEDINGS

McAllister was born in 1953, has a college degree and has completed less than one year of studies toward a Masters degree in economics. He has worked as a truck driver, dishwasher, machine operator and office clerk. He last regularly worked for pay in December 1979, although between November 1984 and August 1985 he worked in a sheltered workshop for mentally disabled people, where he did assembly work and got paid based on production. In addition, McAllister periodically did volunteer work in 1984 and 1985, which included entering computer data and teaching retarded youths to swim.

McAllister has a history of emotional problems caused by a personality disorder. His primary difficulty is inability to cope with stress…