Judge Nicholas Garaufis
Austin formerly worked as a truck driver. He later became an ambulette driver. He stopped working in 2009 due to back pains and muscle spasms stemming from spinal disc herniation, and other spinal infirmities. Treating chiropractor Reich deemed Austin disabled and incapable of returning to work. Orthopedist Diwan also opined that Austin was totally disabled, as did doctor Han to whom Austin was referred for pain management. Austin was deemed not disabled—and denied disability and supplemental security benefits—after the Social Security Administration's medical expert Goldman discounted the severity of Austin's injuries when finding that Austin could sit for six hours daily and stand/walk for four. District court remanded Austin's case, finding that the administrative law judge (ALJ) improperly applied the treating physician rule. The ALJ failed to give good reasons for not giving Diwan's and Reich's medical opinions any weight. His determination that other evidence contradicted their opinions was alone insufficient to justify his decision to place zero weight upon their findings. Nor did the ALJ discuss why he attributed more weight to the findings of non-treating physician Goldman, who did not personally examine Austin.
