Mary Barton v. Michael Astrue

MEMORANDUM

Claimant Mary Barton appeals from the judgment of the district court affirming the Commissioner’s final decision that Barton was not disabled under Title II of the Social Security Act. Barton argues that the ALJ erred in assessing her credibility, erred in giving little weight to the opinion of her treating physician Dr. Sharman Hurlow, M.D., and improperly discounted the opinions of lay witnesses. We have jurisdiction under 28 U.S.C. § 1291 , and we affirm.

This Court reviews de novo a district court’s order affirming the Commissioner’s denial of social security benefits and reverses only if the ALJ’s decision was not supported by substantial evidence in the record as a whole or if the ALJ applied the wrong legal standard. Molina v. Astrue, 674 F.3d 1104, 1110 (9th Cir.2012). Substantial evidence means “ ‘such relevant evidence as a reasonable mind might accept as adequate to support a conclusion.’ ” Valentine v. Comm’r Soc. Sec. Admin., 574 F.3d 685, 690 (9th Cir.2009) (quoting Desrosiers v. Sec’y of Health & Human Servs., 846 F.2d 573, 576 (9th Cir.1988)). The evidence must be “more than a mere scintilla,” but may be less than a preponderance. Id. The ALJ is…