Vezina

Vezina v. Barnhart

Good Law
70 F. App'x 932
United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth CircuitJuly 16, 2003No. 02-56439California540 words

Opinion

Lead Opinion

MEMORANDUM ***

Kate Vezina appeals the district court’s entry of summary judgment in favor of the Commissioner of Social Security, affirming the Commissioner’s final decision to deny Vezina’s application for disability insurance benefits and supplemental security income (SSI) disability benefits under Titles II and XVI of the Social Security Act. We affirm.

Vezina argues that the ALJ failed to articulate which of her allegations were not credible and to identify clear and convincing reasons why. However, the ALJ accepted Vezina’s basic claim that she had a severe mental impairment that imposed significant work-related limitations, but found that this impairment did not meet or equal any of the criteria contained in the listing of impairments. To this extent Vizina’s credibility was not a “critical factor” and Lewin v. Schweiker, 654 F.2d 631 (9th Cir.1981), upon which she relies, is inapposite. See, e.g., Rand v. Sullivan, 924 F.2d 159, 161 (9th Cir.1991) (distinguishing Lewin where Secretary’s decision did not turn on claimant’s credibility). To the extent that the ALJ may implicitly have found Vezina’s subjective complaints *934 about being unable to work incredible, the…

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