Opinion ID: 32250
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: standard of review

Text: In cases appealing a district court’s affirmation of the Commissioner’s decision, we review the final decision of the Commissioner, not the decision of the district court. See Cieutat v. Bowen, 824 F.2d 348, 359 (5th Cir. 1987). Our review of the final decision of the Commissioner denying disability benefits, “is limited to determining whether the decision is supported by substantial evidence in the record and whether the proper legal standards were used in evaluating the evidence.” Villa v. Sullivan, 895 F.2d 1019, 1021 (5th Cir. 1990) (citation omitted). “Substantial evidence is more than a scintilla and less than a preponderance.” Muse v. Sullivan, 925 F.2d 785, 789 (5th Cir. 1991). A finding of no substantial evidence is appropriate only if there is a “conspicuous absence of credible choices” or “no contrary medical evidence.” Haywood v. Sullivan, 888 F.2d 1463, 1466 (5th Cir. 1989); Richardson v. Perales, 402 U.S. 389, 401 (1971) (stating that “substantial evidence” is evidence consisting of “such relevant evidence as a reasonable mind might accept as 3 adequate to support a conclusion”). If supported by substantial evidence, the ALJ’s findings in the Commissioner’s final decision are conclusive. Id. at 390. We may not reweigh the evidence, try the issues de novo, or substitute our judgment for that of the ALJ. Id. B. Framework for Evaluating Whether a Claimant is Disabled The Social Security Act defines disability as a medically determinable physical or mental impairment lasting at least twelve months that prevents the claimant from engaging in substantial gainful activity. 42 U.S.C. § 423(d)(1)(A) (2000). Title 20 of the Code of Federal Regulations, part 404, sets forth a five-step sequential process the ALJ must follow to evaluate whether the claimant has a disability. 20 C.F.R. § 404.1520(a)-(f) (2003); Muse, 925 F.2d at 789. The claimant bears the burden as to the first four steps. Id. First, a claimant must not be presently working. 20 C.F.R. § 404.1520(b). Second, a claimant must establish that he has an “impairment or combination of impairments which significantly limits [his] physical or mental ability to do basic work activities.” Id. § 404.1520(c). Third, to secure a finding of disability without consideration of age, education, and work experience, a claimant must establish that his impairment meets or equals an impairment enumerated in the listing of impairments in the appendix to the regulations. Id. § 404.1520(d). Fourth, a claimant must establish that his impairment prevents him 4 from doing past relevant work. Id. § 404.1520(e). Finally, the burden shifts to the Commissioner to demonstrate that the claimant can perform relevant work. If the Commissioner meets this burden, the claimant must then prove that he cannot in fact perform the work suggested. Id. § 404.1520(f). C. Analysis of the Findings of the ALJ Following this sequential process, the ALJ, whose findings became the final decision of the Commissioner, found that “the claimant has a severe impairment but retains the residual functional capacity to perform work existing in significant numbers in the national and local economies.” In reaching this conclusion, the ALJ made several findings related to each step in the five-step sequential process. McCuller objects to the majority of these findings as not supported by substantial evidence. (1) Objections to the Step 3 Findings of the ALJ The Commissioner found at Step 2 that McCuller had medically determinable severe impairments consisting of “herniated discs, status [post] discectomy and fusion at the L3-4 and L4-5 levels and placement of screw fixation due to lumbar instability.” However, as to Step 3 of the process, the ALJ determined that the impairments were not severe enough to meet or medically equal one of the impairments listed in Appendix 1, Subpart P, of the 5 regulations.2 On appeal, McCuller contends that this finding is erroneous because medical evidence, including a letter submitted to the appeals council by Dr. Bernauer, demonstrates that his back impairments met or equaled the impairments listed in section 1.04B of the listed impairments. Section 1.04B, in relevant part, provides: Disorders of the spine (e.g., herniated nucleus pulposus, spinal arachnoiditis, spinal stenosis, osteoarthritis, degenerative disc disease, facet arthritis, vertebral fracture), resulting in compromise of a nerve root (including the cauda equina) or the spinal cord. With: