Court Opinion

ID: 9914832
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2024-01-03 16:00:48.315842+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T13:14:45.923195
License: Public Domain

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                                                              [PUBLISH]
                                    In the
                 United States Court of Appeals
                         For the Eleventh Circuit

                           ____________________

                                 No. 22-11103
                           ____________________

        MARCUS RAPER,
                                                       Plaintiﬀ-Appellant,
        versus
        COMMISSIONER OF SOCIAL SECURITY,

                                                     Defendant-Appellee.

                           ____________________

                  Appeal from the United States District Court
                       for the Middle District of Florida
                     D.C. Docket No. 5:20-cv-00597-PRL
                           ____________________

        Before LUCK, LAGOA, and TJOFLAT, Circuit Judges.
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        2                          Opinion of the Court                         22-11103

        TJOFLAT, Circuit Judge:
                Marcus Raper appeals the Magistrate Judge’s order aﬃrm-
        ing the Social Security Administration’s (SSA) 2020 denial of his
        claim for disability insurance beneﬁts. 1 First, Raper argues that the
        Supreme Court’s holding in Lucia v. Securities and Exchange Commis-
        sion, 138 S. Ct. 2044, 2055 (2018), requires that his case be remanded
        to a diﬀerent administrative law judge (ALJ). He contends that alt-
        hough the ALJ had been constitutionally appointed by the time he
        reheard his case in 2020, the ALJ was not constitutionally appointed
        under the Appointments Clause, U.S. Const. art. II, § 2, cl. 2, when
        he ﬁrst decided his case in 2017. 2 Second, Raper argues that the
        ALJ erred by not clearly articulating good cause for discounting his
        treating physician’s opinion because the ALJ’s rationale that the
        opinion was inconsistent with the record was conclusory. Third,
        Raper argues that the ALJ erred by partially discrediting his subjec-
        tive complaints of pain because the ALJ did not reference what ev-
        idence conﬂicted with his testimony and only discussed objective
        medical evidence.

        1 The parties consented to have the Magistrate Judge issue final judgment.

        See 28 U.S.C. § 636(c) (“Upon the consent of the parties, a full-time United
        States magistrate judge . . . may conduct any or all proceedings in a jury or
        nonjury civil matter and order the entry of judgment in the case . . . .”); Fed. R.
        Civ. P. 73(a) (“When authorized under 28 U.S.C. § 636(c), a magistrate judge
        may, if all parties consent, conduct a civil action or proceeding . . . .”).
        2 As explained below, the ALJ issued a partially favorable decision in 2017 and

        found that Raper became disabled on August 8, 2017, but was not disabled
        before that date.
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        22-11103              Opinion of the Court                        3

               After careful review, and with the beneﬁt of oral argument,
        we aﬃrm. Under these facts, there was no commensurate Ap-
        pointments Clause violation in the ALJ’s 2020 decision. The ALJ
        also articulated good cause for discounting the treating physician’s
        opinion because—when the ALJ’s decision is read as a whole—it is
        clear why the ALJ found the opinion inconsistent with the record.
        And the ALJ did not err in partially discrediting Raper’s subjective
        complaints because he applied the correct legal standard and did
        not rely solely on objective medical evidence.
                                  I. Background
              In March 2015, Raper applied for Social Security disability
        insurance beneﬁts. He alleged that he became disabled and
        stopped working on December 31, 2013, because of high blood
        pressure, high cholesterol, sleep apnea, back pain with muscle
        spasms, and eye degeneration. Raper’s claim was denied initially
        and upon reconsideration. Raper requested a hearing, which was
        held on August 8, 2017, before ALJ Kevin J. Detherage.
                               A. First ALJ Decision
              In October 2017, the ALJ issued a partially favorable deci-
        sion. He found that Raper became disabled on August 8, 2017, but
        was not disabled before that date. Raper requested review, but the
        Appeals Council denied his request. The Appeals Council’s denial
        made the ALJ’s decision the ﬁnal decision of the Commissioner.
               Raper appealed to the District Court. Later, the Commis-
        sioner moved to reverse and remand under sentence four of
        42 U.S.C. § 405(g) to instruct the ALJ “to obtain supplemental
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        4                          Opinion of the Court                       22-11103

        vocational expert testimony to clarify the eﬀect of the assessed lim-
        itations on [Raper’s] occupational base for the period prior to Au-
        gust 8, 2017.” With no objection from Raper, the District Court
        granted the Commissioner’s motion.
               On remand, the Appeals Council aﬃrmed the favorable por-
        tion of the ALJ’s decision ﬁnding that Raper was disabled begin-
        ning on August 8, 2017. The Appeals Council also vacated the ALJ’s
        ﬁndings related to the time before that date and remanded to the
        ALJ to obtain supplemental evidence from a vocational expert
        (VE).
                                   B. Second ALJ Decision
              On September 16, 2020, Raper had a second hearing before
        the same ALJ. There, Raper testiﬁed in detail about his pain, its
        eﬀect on his life, and his treatment from his neurosurgeon, Dr. Ni-
        zam Razack.3 And, as directed by the Appeals Council, a VE testi-
        ﬁed.
               A month later, the ALJ issued his second decision. The ALJ
        determined that Raper was not disabled between December 31,
        2013, and August 7, 2017, and denied Raper’s claim for disability
        beneﬁts. To support his decision, the ALJ conducted the ﬁve-step

        3 Among other things, Raper testified that he stopped umpiring in October

        2013 because he “couldn’t even stand.” He also testified that he used a cane
        between his first and second surgeries, could walk fifteen to twenty minutes
        maximum, used a wheelchair between his second and third surgeries, could
        lift only fifteen pounds, could balance for only a few minutes, and could sit for
        only twenty to twenty-five minutes.
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        22-11103                  Opinion of the Court                                5

        sequential evaluation process under 20 C.F.R. § 404.1520(a)(4) and
        made these ﬁndings.
                First, Raper had not been engaged in substantial gainful ac-
        tivity between December 31, 2013, and August 7, 2017. Second,
        Raper had the following severe impairments that limited his ability
        to perform basic work activities: lumbar and cervical degenerative
        disc disease, diabetes, obesity, foot drop, and depression. Third,
        Raper did not have an impairment or combination of impairments
        that met or medically equaled the severity of the ones listed in
        20 C.F.R. § 404, Subpart P, App. 1. Fourth, Raper had the residual
        functional capacity (RFC) to perform simple and routine sedentary
        work, subject to certain physical limitations. The ALJ found that
        Raper’s complaints about the intensity, persistence, and limiting ef-
        fects of his symptoms were inconsistent with the medical records.
        Last, the ALJ determined that Raper was unable to perform any
        past relevant work. However, based on the VE’s testimony, the ALJ
        found that there were jobs in the national economy in which Raper
        could work, such as an “Order clerk,” “Addresser,” or “Document
        preparer.” 4
             The ALJ also discussed two medical opinions. The ﬁrst was
        from Dr. Girija Padmanabh, a state agency medical consultant.

        4 See U.S. Dept. of Labor, Dictionary of Occupational Titles, § 209.567-014, Or-

        der Clerk, Food and Beverage, 1991 WL 671794 (4th ed. 1991); id.
        § 209.587-010, Addresser, 1991 WL 671797; id. § 249.587-018, Document Pre-
        parer, Microfilming.
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        6                         Opinion of the Court                      22-11103

        The second, dated November 4, 2015, was from an “unknown
        source,” yet the ALJ assumed it was from a treating physician.5
               Dr. Padmanabh reported that Raper could “lift and/or
        carry” twenty pounds occasionally and ten pounds frequently. She
        also stated that Raper could stand, “sit[,] and/or walk” six hours in
        an eight-hour workday and that Raper had no manipulative, visual,
        or communicative limitations. Dr. Padmanabh noted that Raper
        has some postural limitations that limited his mobility. She con-
        cluded that Raper was not disabled. The ALJ gave “some weight”
        to Dr. Padmanabh’s opinion because of her expertise and review of
        Raper’s ﬁle, but he found that “the record support[ed] greater ex-
        ertional, postural[,] and manipulative limitations.” However, be-
        cause of Raper’s reported progress from his latest back surgery, the
        ALJ concluded that “limitations more stringent than sedentary
        level [were] not warranted.”
               The November 4, 2015, medical opinion reported that Raper
        could: lift twenty pounds frequently; carry up to twenty pounds
        occasionally; and sit, stand, and walk for two hours during an
        eight-hour workday. It also noted that Raper could not operate
        foot controls bilaterally and that Raper had several postural limita-
        tions, which prevented Raper from climbing, stooping, kneeling,
        crouching, and crawling. The ALJ gave this opinion “some weight”
        but found that the “extreme limitations noted [were] not given

        5 Raper alleges that Dr. Razack wrote the November 4, 2015, medical opinion.

        The signature on the opinion is illegible, but Raper testified Dr. Razack wrote
        it.
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        22-11103               Opinion of the Court                         7

        weight due to their inconsistency with the records.” The ALJ
        added that the functional limitations that Raper alleged in his testi-
        mony were “disproportionate to the clinical ﬁndings.”
                             C. Magistrate Judge’s Order
               Rather than seek review from the Appeals Council, Raper
        ﬁled another complaint in the District Court, seeking reversal or
        remand. The Commissioner answered and denied Raper’s asser-
        tions.
                In his brief before the Magistrate Judge, Raper made three
        arguments. First, he argued that the ALJ failed to apply the correct
        legal standard to the November 4, 2015, medical opinion about his
        limitations. He asserted that the ALJ’s decision to not accord the
        opinion substantial weight because it was inconsistent with the rec-
        ord was conclusory. Additionally, he explained that the ALJ incor-
        rectly attributed the opinion to “an unknown source” despite
        Raper’s testimony that it was Dr. Razack’s opinion.
               Second, Raper claimed that the ALJ applied the incorrect le-
        gal standard when evaluating his allegations of pain and limita-
        tions. He argued that the ALJ discounted his testimony about his
        limitations based solely on the objective medical evidence and over-
        looked any other factor.
               Third, Raper argued that the SSA should have reassigned his
        case to a properly appointed ALJ under the Appointments Clause.
        He noted that, since Lucia, the SSA conceded that its ALJs were
        subject to the Appointments Clause and ratiﬁed the appointment
        of its current ALJs on July 16, 2018. He also explained that his
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        8                     Opinion of the Court                22-11103

        original hearing was held in April 2018 before ALJ Detherage, who
        had not been constitutionally appointed. Thus, when the District
        Court remanded, it should have instructed the Commissioner to
        remand to a diﬀerent ALJ who had been constitutionally ap-
        pointed. He also argued that, under Carr v. Saul, 593 U.S. 83, 95
        (2021), he was not required to exhaust this issue before the ALJ at
        the 2020 hearing because ALJs are ill-suited to address constitu-
        tional challenges and he would have been powerless to grant the
        requested relief. Because of these alleged errors, Raper asserted
        that reversal for an award of beneﬁts was the appropriate remedy.
               The Magistrate Judge aﬃrmed the Commissioner’s deci-
        sion. First, the Magistrate Judge found that the ALJ properly con-
        sidered the November 4, 2015, medical opinion. The Magistrate
        Judge acknowledged that the ALJ stated the opinion was from “an
        unknown source,” but the ALJ also “expressly assumed it was from
        a treating source.” The Magistrate Judge thus treated the opinion
        as Dr. Razack’s. The Magistrate Judge also noted that the opinion
        was a checklist opinion, and that checklist opinions are generally
        disfavored.
               Next, the Magistrate Judge rejected Raper’s contention that
        the ALJ’s decision to discount Dr. Razack’s opinion was conclusory.
        The Magistrate Judge explained that the ALJ discussed the objec-
        tive medical evidence in detail throughout his decision and pro-
        vided several examples of why Dr. Razack’s assessment was incon-
        sistent. Further, the Magistrate Judge stated that the ALJ discussed
        Dr. Razack’s opinion immediately after he discussed the state
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        22-11103               Opinion of the Court                         9

        agency’s RFC determination, so the ALJ properly considered the
        record as a whole. It was therefore unnecessary for the ALJ to reit-
        erate those records when discounting Dr. Razack’s opinion.
               Second, the Magistrate Judge found that the ALJ properly
        considered Raper’s subjective complaints of pain because he stated
        that his statements about the intensity, persistence, and limiting ef-
        fects of the symptoms conﬂicted with the medical evidence and
        other evidence. The Magistrate Judge noted that the ALJ explicitly
        explained that he considered Raper’s subjective complaints relative
        to the record, including Raper’s back surgery records and the state’s
        medical consultant’s opinion. The Magistrate Judge found that
        substantial evidence supported the ALJ’s evaluation of Raper’s con-
        dition and the credibility determination.
               Third, the Magistrate Judge rejected Raper’s argument that
        the SSA’s failure to remand his case to a diﬀerent ALJ was an Ap-
        pointments Clause violation. The Magistrate Judge agreed with
        the Commissioner that the only ALJ decision under review was the
        October 2020 decision and noted that a number of district courts
        have rejected similar arguments. Raper timely appealed.
                                II. Legal Standards
               “A few diﬀerent standards of review govern this appeal.” In-
        gram v. Comm’r of Soc. Sec. Admin., 496 F.3d 1253, 1260 (11th Cir.
        2007). First, “[w]e review questions of constitutional law de novo.”
        Benning v. Comm’r, Ga. Dep’t of Corrs., 71 F.4th 1324, 1328 (11th Cir.
        2023). Second, “[w]hen an ALJ denies beneﬁts and the Appeals
        Council denies review, ‘we review the ALJ’s decision as the
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        10                     Opinion of the Court                22-11103

        Commissioner’s ﬁnal decision.’” Samuels v. Acting Comm’r of Soc.
        Sec., 959 F.3d 1042, 1045 (11th Cir. 2020) (quoting Doughty v. Apfel,
        245 F.3d 1274, 1278 (11th Cir. 2001)). “[W]e review de novo the legal
        principles upon which the Commissioner’s decision is based.”
        Moore v. Barnhart, 405 F.3d 1208, 1211 (11th Cir. 2005) (per curiam).
        “However, we review the [Commissioner’s] decision only to deter-
        mine whether it is supported by substantial evidence.” Id. “Sub-
        stantial evidence is less than a preponderance, but rather such rele-
        vant evidence as a reasonable person would accept as adequate to
        support a conclusion. This limited review precludes deciding the
        facts anew, making credibility determinations, or re-weighing the
        evidence.” Id. (citation omitted). “Third, we also review de novo
        the judgment of the district court.” Ingram, 496 F.3d at 1260.
                                  III. Discussion
              On appeal, Raper generally repeats the arguments he made
        before the Magistrate Judge. We ﬁrst discuss Raper’s Appoint-
        ments Clause challenge. Next, we address whether the ALJ applied
        the correct legal standard to the November 4, 2015, medical opin-
        ion. Last, we analyze whether the ALJ applied the correct legal
        standard to Raper’s testimony about his pain and limitations.
                              A. Appointments Clause
               Raper ﬁrst raises an Appointments Clause challenge. He ar-
        gues that irrespective of the ALJ’s appointment status in 2020, the
        ALJ’s participation in the case continued—rather than cured—the
        Appointments Clause violation. Under Lucia, he contends that the
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        22-11103               Opinion of the Court                        11

        SSA should have reassigned his 2020 case to a diﬀerent ALJ. We
        disagree.
                 “The Appointments Clause prescribes the exclusive means
        of appointing ‘Oﬃcers.’” Lucia, 138 S. Ct. at 2051. Although prin-
        cipal oﬃcers must be nominated by the President and conﬁrmed
        by the Senate, “the Congress may by Law vest the Appointment of
        such inferior Oﬃcers, as they think proper, in the President alone,
        in the Courts of Law, or in the Heads of Departments.” U.S. Const.
        art. II, § 2, cl. 2.
               Not long ago, the Supreme Court held that ALJs of the Se-
        curities and Exchange Commission (SEC) were “‘Oﬃcers of the
        United States’ [rather than] simply employees of the Federal Gov-
        ernment” for purposes of the Appointments Clause. See Lucia,
        138 S. Ct. at 2049, 2051. In Lucia, the SEC instituted an administra-
        tive proceeding against Raymond Lucia for violating the Invest-
        ment Adviser’s Act and assigned the case to an ALJ. See id. at 2049–
        50. Because the ALJ had been appointed by SEC staﬀ members and
        not the Commission, Lucia argued that the ALJ was not constitu-
        tionally appointed. Id. at 2050.
                Relevant here, Lucia discussed the appropriate remedy for
        such an Appointments Clause violation. See id. at 2055. The Su-
        preme Court explained that “the ‘appropriate’ remedy for an adju-
        dication tainted with an appointments violation is a new ‘hearing
        before a properly appointed’ oﬃcial.” Id. (quoting Ryder v. United
        States, 515 U.S. 177, 183, 188 (1995)). It added that the “oﬃcial can-
        not be [the original ALJ], even if he has by now received (or receives
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        12                         Opinion of the Court                       22-11103

        sometime in the future) a constitutional appointment.” Id. The
        Supreme Court reasoned that because the original ALJ had “al-
        ready both heard Lucia’s case and issued an initial decision on the
        merits[, h]e [could not] be expected to consider the matter as
        though he had not adjudicated [the case] before.” Id. Thus, “[t]o
        cure the constitutional error, another ALJ (or the Commission it-
        self )” was required to “hold the new hearing to which Lucia [was]
        entitled.” Id.
               Responding to Justice Breyer’s concurrence—that it would
        be permissible for the same ALJ to hear Lucia’s case on remand—
        the majority highlighted two remedial aims of Appointment
        Clause violations. The majority explained that Appointments
        Clause remedies (1) advance the structural purposes of the clause
        and (2) incentivize litigants to raise Appointments Clause chal-
        lenges. Id. at 2055 n.5. The majority reasoned these aims were best
        accomplished by providing a successful litigant with a hearing be-
        fore a new ALJ because “the old [ALJ] would have no reason to
        think he did anything wrong on the merits—and so could be ex-
        pected to reach all the same judgments.” Id. (citation omitted). 6

        6 The majority also noted that a new ALJ is not required “for every Appoint-

        ments Clause violation.” Lucia v. SEC, 138 S. Ct. 2044, 2055 n.5 (2018). It rec-
        ognized that remand to a new ALJ was possible “because other ALJs (and the
        Commission) [were] available to hear this case.” Id. The majority also under-
        stood that where the “Appointments Clause problem is with the Commission
        itself, so that there is no substitute decisionmaker, the rule of necessity would
        presumably kick in and allow the Commission to do the rehearing.” Id.
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        22-11103               Opinion of the Court                        13

               In response to Lucia, the SSA Acting Commissioner at the
        time recognized that SSA ALJs were also “Oﬃcers” under the Ap-
        pointments Clause, and she ratiﬁed their appointments on July 16,
        2018. SSR 19-1p, 84 Fed. Reg. 9582, 9583 (Mar. 15, 2019). On March
        15, 2019, the SSA announced that, in response to timely raised Ap-
        pointments Clause challenges, the Appeals Council would vacate
        pre-ratiﬁcation ALJ decisions and “either remand the case to an ALJ
        other than the ALJ who issued the decision under review, or issue
        its own new decision about the claim covering the period before
        the date of the ALJ’s decision.” Id. But this remedy was only avail-
        able for claimants that timely raised Appointments Clause chal-
        lenges to the Appeals Council. Id.
                Most recently, the Supreme Court issued its opinion in Carr,
        593 U.S. 83. There the Supreme Court held that the Eighth and
        Tenth Circuits “erred in imposing an issue-exhaustion requirement
        on [the] petitioners’ Appointments Clause claims.” Id. at 96. The
        Supreme Court further concluded that “[w]here . . . claimants are
        not required to exhaust certain issues in administrative proceedings
        to preserve them for judicial review, claimants who raise those is-
        sues for the ﬁrst time in federal court are not untimely in doing so.”
        Id. at 95.
               At ﬁrst blush, it may appear that Lucia and Carr settle the
        issue here. But Lucia and Carr dealt with situations diﬀerent from
        Raper’s. In Lucia, the issue was how to remedy an uncorrected Ap-
        pointment Clause violation. There was no question about whether
        there was a live Appointments Clause violation—an
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        14                     Opinion of the Court                 22-11103

        unconstitutionally appointed ALJ had issued the decision before
        the Court. See 138 S. Ct. at 2051. Carr also dealt with an unreme-
        died Appointments Clause violation. The issue there dealt with
        how to properly raise the issue and whether the claimant ﬁrst
        needed to present it to the ALJ. See 593 U.S. at 86–87. But there
        was no question that an unconstitutionally appointed ALJ had is-
        sued the opinion before the Court.
               Raper’s situation differs. An unconstitutionally appointed
        ALJ issued the first decision, but that decision was vacated and re-
        manded on the merits. When he issued his second decision—the
        decision before this Court—the ALJ had been constitutionally ap-
        pointed. Raper did not challenge the first decision based on the
        Appointments Clause violation. So the issue here is not how to
        remedy or timely raise an Appointments Clause violation; the issue
        is whether there is an Appointments Clause violation at all.
               Whether there is an Appointments Clause violation in situ-
        ations like Raper’s is a matter of first impression in our Circuit.
        Raper would have us follow the lead of the Ninth and Fourth Cir-
        cuits, both of which applied Lucia in similar factual scenarios and
        held that Appointments Clause violations existed. See Cody v. Ki-
        jakazi, 48 F.4th 956 (9th Cir. 2022); Brooks v. Kijakazi, 60 F.4th 735
        (4th Cir. 2023). We decline to do so.
              In Cody, an unconstitutionally appointed SSA ALJ reviewed
        and denied Cody’s claim. 48 F.4th at 958. Cody appealed to the
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        22-11103                   Opinion of the Court                               15

        district court 7 without challenging the ALJ’s appointment. Id. The
        district court vacated the ALJ’s decision and remanded for a new
        hearing “because the ALJ failed to properly consider certain evi-
        dence.” Id. The case returned to the same ALJ, who was now con-
        stitutionally appointed. Id. “[T]he ALJ reached the same conclu-
        sion—no benefits.” Id. Cody appealed again, this time raising an
        Appointments Clause violation. Id. at 958–59. The district court
        affirmed the ALJ and denied Cody’s Appointments Clause claim
        because the ALJ’s first decision had been vacated and the ALJ was
        properly appointed when she issued her second decision. Id. at
        959–60.
               On appeal, the Ninth Circuit held that Cody was due a new
        hearing before a different ALJ. Id. at 961. In its view, “Cody did
        not receive what Lucia requires: an adjudication untainted by an
        Appointments Clause violation.” Id. at 962. The Ninth Circuit rea-
        soned that remanding the case to a new ALJ served the two reme-
        dial aims of Lucia. Id. Even though the ALJ was constitutionally
        appointed when she issued the second decision, it was “obvious
        that the [first] decision tainted the [second] decision.” Id. The ALJ
        “copied verbatim parts of the [first] decision into her [second] deci-
        sion,” making it clear that she “didn’t take a fresh look at the case”
        the second time around. Id. at 962–63.
              In Brooks, the Fourth Circuit reached the same conclusion
        based on similar facts. See 60 F.4th at 743–44. Brooks applied for

        7 Cody’s appeal occurred shortly after Lucia. See Cody v. Kijakazi, 48 F.4th 956,

        959 (9th Cir. 2022).
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        16                     Opinion of the Court                22-11103

        Social Security beneﬁts but was denied by an unconstitutionally ap-
        pointed ALJ. Id. at 736. Brooks sought review from the Appeals
        Council. Id. Following Lucia, the Appeals Council vacated the
        ALJ’s decision and remanded for further proceedings. Id. at 737.
        Brooks had not raised, and the Appeals Council did not address, the
        Appointments clause issue; instead, the Appeals Council identiﬁed
        ﬂaws in the ALJ’s decision. Id. On remand, the same ALJ—who
        was now constitutionally appointed—again denied Brooks’s claim.
        Id. After the Appeals Council denied review, Brooks appealed to a
        federal district court. There, Brooks raised substantive issues with
        the ALJ’s second decision and an Appointments Clause challenge.
        Id. at 738. The district court aﬃrmed the Commissioner’s denial
        of Brooks’s disability beneﬁts claim because it found that: (1) the
        ALJ was properly appointed before the second decision; (2) the Ap-
        peals Council’s vacatur of the ALJ’s ﬁrst decision on the merits
        eliminated Lucia’s remedy requirement; and (3) Lucia did not hold
        that a new oﬃcer is required for every Appointments Clause viola-
        tion. Id. at 738–39.
               The Fourth Circuit reversed. Id. at 741–42, 744. It explained
        that Cody was “practically on all-fours” and declined to reach a dif-
        ferent conclusion. Id. at 742. In the Fourth Circuit’s view, because
        Brooks never received the remedy Lucia required, the constitu-
        tional error committed in the ALJ’s ﬁrst decision “was a continuing
        violation that infected” the ALJ’s second decision on the same
        claim. Id. The Fourth Circuit added that the entire administrative
        adjudication included the ﬁrst ﬂawed ALJ decision. Id. Thus, under
        Lucia, the ALJ could not properly rule on Brooks’s claim. Id.
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        22-11103                 Opinion of the Court                            17

        Notably, the Fourth Circuit also rejected the Commissioner’s argu-
        ment that Lucia’s remedy was inapplicable when a constitutionally
        inﬁrm ALJ decision is vacated on the merits. Id. at 743. According
        to the Fourth Circuit, Lucia “did not carve out any exception to the
        remedy’s necessity” in that situation. Id. And because the ALJ had
        heard and decided the merits of Brooks’s claim, there was a strong
        possibility the ALJ “would resolve the issue identiﬁed by the Ap-
        peals Council and, in the end, simply make the same ruling.” Id.
        Which, as the Fourth Circuit noted, happened in the case. See id.
               We respectfully disagree with the Fourth and Ninth Circuits.
        The District Court’s merits-based vacatur of the ALJ’s 2017 Deci-
        sion eliminated the taint of the unconstitutional appointment.
        There is no live Appointments Clause violation, so there is no need
        for a Lucia remedy. This is so for three reasons.
               First, when a decision is vacated, it becomes void and has no
        legal eﬀect. See United States v. Sigma Int’l, Inc., 300 F.3d 1278, 1280
        (11th Cir. 2002) (per curiam).8 The ALJ essentially started fresh
        when the District Court vacated the 2017 decision and remanded.
        The decision before us now is the 2020 decision—not the 2017 de-
        cision. When the ALJ began anew, the entire second administrative

        8  See also Social Security Admin., Program Operations Manual System
        (POMS), GN 03106.036 Court Remand Orders, https://perma.cc/3HTB-
        RLKJ (“[A] court order vacating the prior decision and remanding the case to
        the Commissioner voids the prior decision . . . and thus returns the case to
        status of a claim ‘pending’ before SSA.”).
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        18                     Opinion of the Court                22-11103

        adjudication was conducted by a constitutionally appointed ALJ,
        which brings this case outside the bounds of Lucia.
               Second, the remedy in Lucia served the purpose of encour-
        aging claimants to raise Appointments Clause challenges and was
        motivated by a concern that the old ALJ would have no reason to
        think he did anything wrong on the merits. Lucia, 138 S. Ct. at 2055
        n.5. Neither that purpose nor that concern are relevant here.
                When the District Court vacated the 2017 decision and re-
        manded the case, it was returned to an ALJ who was constitution-
        ally appointed. There was no longer a constitutional violation to
        remedy, so there was no need to incentivize raising one. Nor was
        there any danger that the ALJ would lack notice of the deﬁciency
        in his earlier decision—the District Court and the Appeals Council
        explicitly told him what was wrong with the 2017 decision. Unlike
        the ALJ in Cody, the ALJ here did not just adopt his earlier decision
        verbatim. Nothing in the record suggests that he failed to take a
        fresh look at Raper’s claim.
                Third, our entire judicial system works on the premise that
        a judge can set aside his or her earlier decision and look at a case
        anew. See Liteky v. United States, 510 U.S. 540, 551 (1994) (“It has
        long been regarded as normal and proper for a judge to sit in the
        same case upon its remand . . . .”). For example, the Supreme
        Court tells this Court what we got wrong, and the same panel re-
        considers the case. This Court vacates and remands matters to dis-
        trict courts as a matter of course—each time providing them with
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        22-11103                   Opinion of the Court                               19

        instructions on how they erred and how to proceed going forward.9
        We see no reason to disrupt that system here because we do not
        think this situation presents the same structural concerns as Lucia.
               We therefore hold that there is no Appointments Clause vi-
        olation when an earlier decision made by an unconstitutionally ap-
        pointed ALJ is vacated on the merits and remanded to the same
        ALJ, who is now constitutionally appointed.
                                   B. Physician’s Opinion
                Raper next argues that the ALJ erred because he failed to ap-
        ply the correct legal standards to the November 4, 2015, medical
        opinion and made ﬁndings not supported by substantial evidence.
        As an initial point, Raper asserts that the ALJ’s failure to
        acknowledge that this was Dr. Razack’s opinion prevents us from
        conducting meaningful review. He contends that the ALJ’s ﬁnding
        that the opinion was inconsistent with the record is conclusory and
        fails to provide good cause for rejecting it. Finally, Raper asserts
        that the Magistrate Judge erred by ﬁnding that the ALJ’s prior dis-
        cussion of the evidence clearly articulated the ALJ’s reason for dis-
        counting the opinion.
             In response, the Commissioner argues that it is ambiguous
        whether the November 4, 2015, medical opinion was written by

        9 Only in rare circumstances do we remand to a different district court judge.

        For example, when the district court judge would have difficulty putting aside
        his or her previous views and findings. See, e.g., Clark v. Coats & Clark, Inc.,
        990 F.2d 1217, 1230 (11th Cir. 1993); United States v. Torkington, 874 F.2d 1441,
        1446–47 (11th Cir. 1989) (per curiam).
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        20                     Opinion of the Court                  22-11103

        Dr. Razack. Regardless, the Commissioner notes that the ALJ as-
        sumed it was from a treating source. Next, the Commissioner con-
        tends that the ALJ had good cause for discounting the opinion; the
        ALJ found that it was inconsistent with the record. The Commis-
        sioner argues that the ALJ clearly articulated suﬃcient factual sup-
        port for that reason based on his preceding discussion of the record,
        which the ALJ found supported a sedentary RFC. According to the
        Commissioner, nothing requires the ALJ to repeat his entire factual
        analysis of the evidence to be legally suﬃcient. We agree with the
        Commissioner.
                 As explained above, our review of the Commissioner’s deci-
        sion is limited to whether substantial evidence supports the deci-
        sion and whether the correct legal standards were applied. See Win-
        schel v. Comm’r of Soc. Sec., 631 F.3d 1176, 1178 (11th Cir. 2011). “An
        individual claiming Social Security disability beneﬁts must prove
        that []he is disabled.” Moore, 405 F.3d at 1211. To determine
        whether a claimant is disabled, the Social Security regulations man-
        date a ﬁve-step sequential evaluation process. See 20 C.F.R.
        § 404.1520(a)(4); Winschel, 631 F.3d at 1178.
               Relevant here is step four. There, the ALJ formulates the
        claimant’s RFC by considering a claimant’s “ability to meet the
        physical, mental, sensory, and other requirements of work.”
        20 C.F.R. § 404.1545(a)(4). The RFC is the most a claimant can still
        do despite his or her restrictions. Id. § 404.1545(a)(1). To deter-
        mine what a claimant can still do, the ALJ examines all “relevant
        medical and other evidence.” Id. § 404.1545(a)(3). Evidence
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        22-11103                   Opinion of the Court                             21

        includes (1) statements from medical sources and (2) descriptions
        and observations from the claimant and the claimant’s “family,
        neighbors, friends, or other persons.” Id. Based on that evidence,
        the ALJ determines what classiﬁcation of jobs the claimant can per-
        form. See id. § 404.1567. Pertinent here is the sedentary classiﬁca-
        tion. A sedentary job classiﬁcation is the lowest physical exertion
        requirement that an ALJ can assess in making a disability determi-
        nation. See id. § 404.1567(a). 10
                For claims filed before March 27, 2017, an ALJ must “give
        more weight to [the] medical opinions” of a claimant’s treating
        physicians unless good cause is shown to the contrary.
        Id. § 404.1527(c)(2); see also Schink v. Comm’r of Soc. Sec.,
        935 F.3d 1245, 1259 (11th Cir. 2019) (per curiam). “Good cause ex-
        ists when (1) the treating physician’s opinion was not bolstered by
        the evidence, (2) the evidence supported a contrary finding, or
        (3) the treating physician’s opinion was conclusory or inconsistent
        with his or her own medical records.” Schink, 935 F.3d at 1259.
        “[T]he ALJ must clearly articulate the reasons for giving less weight

        10 20 C.F.R. § 404.1567(a) explains that

                [s]edentary work involves lifting no more than 10 pounds at a
                time and occasionally lifting or carrying articles like docket
                files, ledgers, and small tools. Although a sedentary job is de-
                fined as one which involves sitting, a certain amount of walk-
                ing and standing is often necessary in carrying out job duties.
                Jobs are sedentary if walking and standing are required occa-
                sionally and other sedentary criteria are met.
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        22                         Opinion of the Court                       22-11103

        to the opinion of a treating physician. The failure to do so is re-
        versible error.” Id. (citations omitted).
                Raper’s initial point—that the ALJ’s failure to acknowledge
        that Dr. Razack wrote the November 4, 2015, medical opinion pre-
        vents us from conducting meaningful review—was raised for the
        first time in his reply brief. We have repeatedly held that “[i]ssues
        not raised in an initial brief are deemed forfeited and will not be
        addressed absent extraordinary circumstances.” Anthony v. Georgia,
        69 F.4th 796, 807 (11th Cir. 2023); see also Sapuppo v. Allstate Florid-
        ian Ins. Co., 739 F.3d 678, 683 (11th Cir. 2014) (collecting cases stat-
        ing the same). Extraordinary circumstances include situations in
        which:
                (1) the issue involves a pure question of law and re-
                fusal to consider it would result in a miscarriage of
                justice; (2) the party lacked an opportunity to raise
                the issue at the district court level; (3) the interest of
                substantial justice is at stake; (4) the proper resolution
                is beyond any doubt; or (5) the issue presents signiﬁ-
                cant questions of general impact or of great public
                concern.
        United States v. Campbell, 26 F.4th 860, 873 (11th Cir. 2022) (en
        banc), cert. denied, 143 S. Ct. 95 (2022). None of these circumstances
        are present here. We therefore decline to address this argument.11

        11 At best, the ALJ’s failure to attribute the November 4, 2015, medical opinion

        to Dr. Razack was harmless error. Remand is unwarranted unless an error
        creates fundamental unfairness or prejudice. See Diorio v. Heckler, 721 F.2d 726,
        728 (11th Cir. 1983) (describing the ALJ’s errors as “harmless” because they
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        22-11103                    Opinion of the Court                                 23

               As for Raper’s other arguments, the parties argue past each
        other. Though Raper uses the phrase “substantial evidence,” 12 his
        argument is that the ALJ legally erred by failing to clearly articulate
        why he assigned no weight to the November 4, 2015, medical opin-
        ion’s RFC finding. The Commissioner addresses Raper’s argument
        but frames her analysis by arguing that the ALJ’s RFC finding was
        supported by substantial evidence as shown by the ALJ’s previous
        discussion of the record. Raper’s argument relies on the legal
        standard on which the ALJ’s decision was based, not its factual un-
        derpinnings.13 Thus, de novo—not substantial evidence—review

        were “irrelevant” to the ALJ’s analysis of the relevant factors). “[T]he burden
        of showing that an error is harmful normally falls upon the party attacking the
        agency’s determination.” Viverette v. Comm’r of Soc. Sec., 13 F.4th 1309, 1317–
        18 (11th Cir. 2021) (alteration in original) (quoting Shinseki v. Sanders,
        556 U.S. 396, 409 (2009)). Given that the ALJ assumed the opinion was from
        a treating physician—and therefore subject to the old treating physician rule—
        Raper has not met his burden here.
        12 Raper has forfeited any attempt at a substantial evidence argument.        Only
        in his reply does he clarify his argument that substantial evidence does not
        support the ALJ’s finding that the November 4, 2015, medical opinion was
        from an “unknown source.” See Fed. R. App. P. 28(a)(8)(A) (noting that an
        argument must contain the “appellant’s contentions and the reasons for them,
        with citations to the authorities and the parts of the record on which the appel-
        lant relies” (emphasis added)); see also Harner v. Soc. Sec. Admin., Comm’r,
        38 F.4th 892, 899 (11th Cir. 2022) (“An appellant forfeits an issue when [he]
        ‘raises it in a perfunctory manner without supporting arguments and author-
        ity.’” (quoting Sapuppo v. Allstate Floridian Ins. Co., 739 F.3d 678, 681 (11th Cir.
        2014))). As noted above, Raper does not dispute that the signature on the form
        is illegible.
        13 Raper also argues that it would be improper to affirm based on the Magis-

        trate Judge’s acknowledgment that the November 4, 2015, medical opinion
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        24                      Opinion of the Court                   22-11103

        applies. See Simon v. Comm’r, Soc. Sec. Admin., 7 F.4th 1094, 1103
        (11th Cir. 2021).
               The ALJ’s stated reason for discounting the November 4,
        2015, medical opinion—that it was inconsistent with the medical
        records—was adequate and amounts to good cause. See Hargress v.
        Soc. Sec. Admin., Comm’r, 883 F.3d 1302, 1306 (11th Cir. 2018) (per
        curiam) (“The ALJ’s stated reason for discounting Dr. Odjegba’s
        opinion—that it was inconsistent with his own medical records and
        the record as a whole—was adequate and amounts to good
        cause.”). The ALJ’s finding that the extreme limitations in the No-
        vember 4, 2015, medical opinion were inconsistent with the record
        must be viewed in context. This finding was reached following the
        ALJ’s detailed discussion of the evidentiary record of Raper’s im-
        pairments, including various physical examination records.
               Among other examination records, the ALJ discussed treat-
        ment notes from Dr. Razack, Dr. Vivian Woodward (another
        treating physician), and Dr. Padmanabh as follows. At a March
        2015 examination, Dr. Razack reported that Raper “raised from a
        seated position without difficulty, and ambulated with the assis-
        tance of a cane.” A month later, Dr. Razack noted that Raper was
        in good strength in his lower extremities, ambulated without assis-
        tive devices, and was advised to increase his activity levels. And, in
        October 2015, Dr. Razack reported that Raper’s exam was stable

        was a “checklist opinion” and such opinions are generally disfavored. We
        need not address this argument because we conclude below that the ALJ did
        not err in discounting this opinion.
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        22-11103                Opinion of the Court                          25

        but that Raper complained of low back pain if he sat or stood for
        prolonged periods.
               Like Dr. Razack, Dr. Woodward noted in her March 2015
        records that Raper had a “normal gate,” his “balance was easy,” and
        his “posture was within normal limits.”
               Last—and right before discounting the November 4, 2015,
        medical opinion—the ALJ discussed Dr. Padmanabh’s RFC assess-
        ment. As explained above, Dr. Padmanabh concluded that Raper
        could stand, sit, and walk six hours in an eight-hour workday, as
        well as lift and carry twenty pounds occasionally and ten pounds
        frequently. Dr. Padmanabh also concluded that Raper had no ma-
        nipulative limitations but had some postural limitations—though
        the ALJ found that the record supported greater limitations.
                Contrary to Raper’s argument, it is not as if the ALJ provided
        “no explanation” and there is “no obvious reason for the incon-
        sistency in sight.” See Schink, 935 F.3d at 1261. We agree with our
        sister circuits that “it is proper to read the ALJ’s decision as a whole,
        and . . . it would be a needless formality to have the ALJ repeat sub-
        stantially similar factual analyses” in this circumstance. See Rice v.
        Barnhart, 384 F.3d 363, 370 n.5 (7th Cir. 2004); Jones v. Barnhart,
        364 F.3d 501, 505 (3d Cir. 2004) (holding that the ALJ’s decision
        read as a whole, contained sufficient explanation for his finding at
        step three because the ALJ was not required “to use particular lan-
        guage or adhere to a particular format in conducting his analysis”).
              This rationale comports with Winschel’s requirement for
        ALJs to state with particularity the weight given to a treating
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        26                         Opinion of the Court                         22-11103

        physician’s opinion or to clearly articulate grounds for rejecting a
        treating physician’s opinion. See 631 F.3d at 1179. In Winschel, this
        Court was concerned that, in the absence of such a statement, it
        would be impossible to assess whether the ALJ’s decision was ra-
        tional and supported by substantial evidence. See id. We do not
        face that impossibility here. The ALJ explained the weight he af-
        forded the November 4, 2015, medical opinion and that he did not
        give the extreme limitations weight due to their inconsistency with
        the records. Though the ALJ did not repeat his discussion of those
        records in the same paragraph, he thoroughly discussed those rec-
        ords in the immediately preceding paragraphs where he deter-
        mined that the records supported a sedentary RFC. Short of
        re-summarizing or adding an internal citation to those paragraphs,
        it is hard to imagine how the ALJ could have been clearer. 14

        14 The exact level of clarity required in an ALJ’s statement in similar circum-

        stances has been discussed extensively—at least in our unpublished decisions.
        See Delgado v. Comm’r of Soc. Sec., No. 20-14234, 2021 WL 4099237, at *7 (11th
        Cir. Sept. 9, 2021) (Branch, J., dissenting) (concluding that the ALJ clearly ar-
        ticulated a specific justification for giving less weight to a treating physician’s
        opinion under similar circumstances); Kaplowitz v. Acting Comm’r of Soc. Sec.,
        806 F. App’x 711, 717 (11th Cir. 2020) (per curiam) (holding that the ALJ’s fail-
        ure to explicitly state the weight given to a treating physician’s opinion was
        harmless error because it was clear that the ALJ considered the opinion and
        rejected it based on contrary evidence); Stewart v. Comm’r of Soc. Sec. Admin.,
        746 F. App’x 851, 855–56 (11th Cir. 2018) (per curiam) (holding that the ALJ
        failed to clearly articulate reasons for discounting a treating physician’s opin-
        ion, in part, because the ALJ failed to specify how the physician’s opinion was
        undercut); cf. Martin v. Acting Comm’r of Soc. Sec., No. 21-11532,
        2022 WL 1486387, at *6 (11th Cir. May 11, 2022) (per curiam) (holding that the
        ALJ satisfied the requirement to state with particularity the weight afforded to
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        22-11103                   Opinion of the Court                                27

                             C. Raper’s Subjective Complaints
                Raper’s final argument is that the ALJ applied the incorrect
        legal standard to his own testimony about his pain and limitations.
        He asserts that the ALJ failed to apply the 20 C.F.R. § 404.1529(c)(3)
        factors when evaluating his subjective complaints and only relied
        on objective medical evidence.15
               The Commissioner contends that Raper’s legal error argu-
        ment fails for two reasons. First, the Commissioner asserts that the
        ALJ did not discount Raper’s testimony because it was unsubstan-
        tiated by the objective medical evidence; the ALJ did so because

        a treating physician’s opinion despite not using specific terms). We emphasize
        that there are no magic words to state with particularity the weight given to
        medical opinions or the reasons for discounting them. What matters is
        whether the ALJ “state[s] with at least some measure of clarity the grounds for
        his [or her] decision.” Winschel v. Comm’r of Soc. Sec., 631 F.3d 1176, 1179 (11th
        Cir. 2011) (quoting Owens v. Heckler, 748 F.2d 1511, 1516 (11th Cir. 1984) (per
        curiam)).
        15 Raper also, again, makes a passing argument that the ALJ “made findings

        not supported by substantial evidence.” The Commissioner argues that sub-
        stantial evidence supports the ALJ’s finding that Raper’s subjective complaints
        about his pain and limitations were not fully consistent with the record. The
        Commissioner notes that Raper does not refute this finding and has thus for-
        feited that issue.
            “Merely making passing references to a claim . . . is insufficient. Instead,
        the party must clearly and unambiguously demarcate the specific claim and
        devote a discrete section of his argument to it so the court may properly con-
        sider it.” Brown v. United States, 720 F.3d 1316, 1332 (11th Cir. 2013) (citation
        omitted); see also Harner, 38 F.4th at 898–98; Fed. R. App. P. 28(a)(8)(A). Raper
        has therefore forfeited this argument and we do not consider it.
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        28                      Opinion of the Court                  22-11103

        Raper’s testimony was inconsistent with the objective medical ev-
        idence. Second, the Commissioner contends that the ALJ did not
        rely solely on objective medical evidence because he discussed
        Raper’s testimony, his treatments, and their effectiveness, his re-
        ports to his treating physicians, and medical source opinions. We
        again agree with the Commissioner.
               To establish a disability based on testimony of pain and
        other symptoms, a claimant must show: “(1) evidence of an under-
        lying medical condition; and (2) either (a) objective medical evi-
        dence confirming the severity of the alleged pain; or (b) that the
        objectively determined medical condition can reasonably be ex-
        pected to give rise to the claimed pain.” Wilson v. Barnhart,
        284 F.3d 1219, 1225 (11th Cir. 2002) (per curiam). “The claimant’s
        subjective testimony supported by medical evidence that satisfies
        the standard is itself sufficient to support a finding of disability.”
        Holt v. Sullivan, 921 F.2d 1221, 1223 (11th Cir. 1991) (per curiam).
        “[I]n certain situations, pain alone can be disabling, even when its
        existence is unsupported by objective evidence.” Foote v. Chater,
        67 F.3d 1553, 1561 (11th Cir. 1995) (per curiam).
                When evaluating a claimant’s statements as to the intensity
        of his symptoms, the ALJ considers: (1) the claimant’s daily activi-
        ties; (2) the location, duration, frequency, and intensity of the
        claimant’s pain or other symptoms; (3) any precipitating and aggra-
        vating factors; (4) the type, dosage, effectiveness, and side effects of
        medication; (5) the claimant’s treatments other than medication;
        (6) any measures used to relieve pain; and (7) other factors
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        22-11103                Opinion of the Court                          29

        concerning a claimant’s functional limitations and restrictions
        based on pain or other symptoms. See 20 C.F.R. § 416.929(c)(3)(i)–
        (vii). The ALJ must consider these factors in relation to other evi-
        dence in the record and whether the claimant’s statements conflict
        with other evidence. Id. § 416.929(c)(4).
                We will not disturb a clearly articulated credibility finding if
        supported by substantial evidence. Foote, 67 F.3d at 1562. The ALJ
        need not discuss every piece of evidence if the ALJ’s decision is not
        a broad rejection and there is enough for us to conclude that the
        ALJ considered the claimant’s medical condition as a whole. Dyer
        v. Barnhart, 395 F.3d 1206, 1210 (11th Cir. 2005) (per curiam);
        see also Jamison v. Bowen, 814 F.2d 585, 590 (11th Cir. 1987) (“In
        these cases ‘our function is to ensure that the decision was based
        on a reasonable and consistently applied standard, and was care-
        fully considered in light of all the relevant facts.’” (quoting Parker v.
        Bowen, 788 F.2d 1512, 1521 (11th Cir. 1986) (en banc))).
               Where “proof of a disability is based upon subjective evi-
        dence and a credibility determination is, therefore, a critical factor
        to the Secretary’s decision, the ALJ must either explicitly discredit
        such testimony or the implication [from the ALJ’s opinion] must
        be so clear as to amount to a specific credibility finding.” Foote,
        67 F.3d at 1562 (quoting Tieniber v. Heckler, 720 F.2d 1251, 1255
        (11th Cir. 1983) (per curiam)). “A lack of an explicit credibility find-
        ing becomes a ground for remand when credibility is critical to the
        outcome of the case.” Id. But remand is unwarranted unless an
        error shows “unfairness” or “clear prejudice.” See Edwards v.
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        30                     Opinion of the Court                22-11103

        Sullivan, 937 F.2d 580, 586 (11th Cir. 1991) (affirming Commis-
        sioner’s decision denying disability benefits where the claimant was
        not adequately informed of her right to counsel because the Com-
        missioner’s decision was supported by substantial evidence appear-
        ing in the record as a whole and the claimant did not show that she
        was prejudiced by the error).
                For example, in Foote, we remanded because the ALJ failed
        to make an adequate explicit or implicit credibility finding in dis-
        crediting the claimant’s testimony on the extent of her pain.
        67 F.3d at 1562–63. We explained that a credibility finding was cru-
        cial to assessing the claimant’s subjective complaints to determine
        her overall RFC. Id. at 1562. But the ALJ identified no inconsist-
        encies between the claimant’s statements to her physicians and
        those made on her disability benefits application or at her adminis-
        trative hearing, and no VE was called to determine her realistic
        ability to find work. Id.
                In discounting Raper’s testimony, the ALJ neither failed to
        apply the 20 C.F.R. § 404.1529(c)(3) factors nor relied solely on ob-
        jective medical evidence. To be clear, the ALJ discredited Raper’s
        testimony because he observed that Raper’s “medically determina-
        ble impairments could reasonably be expected to cause [his] alleged
        symptoms; however, [Raper’s] statements concerning the inten-
        sity, persistence and limiting effects of these symptoms [were] not
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        22-11103                   Opinion of the Court                               31

        entirely consistent with the medical evidence and other evidence
        in the record.” 16
                The ALJ’s decision shows that he considered, in addition to
        the objective medical evidence, Raper’s responses in agency ques-
        tionnaires and the specifics of Raper’s testimony at the hearing.
        The ALJ explained that in his agency questionnaire responses,
        Raper “alleged debilitating physical and mental symptoms,” includ-
        ing “difficulty with lifting, squatting, bending, standing, walking[,]
        and stair climbing.” Regarding Raper’s ability to perform house-
        hold chores, the ALJ noted that Raper “did not endorse any activi-
        ties inconsistent with sedentary level exertion.” The ALJ also rec-
        ognized that Raper testified that he: (1) stopped umpiring because
        he could not move around, (2) could only walk for thirty minutes
        before his legs hurt, (3) used a cane after his second back surgery,
        (4) could lift fifteen pounds, and (5) could not balance after a few
        minutes. This is precisely the type of “other evidence” ALJs must
        consider under 20 C.F.R. § 404.1529(c)(3)(i)–(vii).

        16 As we have noted in an unpublished opinion, rejecting a claimant’s state-

        ments only because they are not corroborated by the medical evidence “is a
        very different circumstance from when the claimant’s statements are incon-
        sistent with the medical or other evidence of record.” Yanes v. Comm’r, Soc. Sec.
        Admin., No. 20-14233, 2021 WL 2982084, at *7 n.14 (11th Cir. July 15, 2021)
        (per curiam). ALJs must evaluate a claimant’s statements “in relation to” the
        available evidence and “consider whether there are any inconsistencies in the
        evidence and the extent to which there are any conflicts between [the claim-
        ant’s] statements and the rest of the evidence.” 20 C.F.R. § 404.1529(c)(4).
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        32                       Opinion of the Court                       22-11103

               After detailing the medical evidence, the ALJ reiterated that:
               the functional restrictions alleged by [Raper] are not
               entirely consistent with the evidence, as they have
               been found to be disproportionate to the clinical find-
               ings. [Raper’s] subjective complaints have been ac-
               cepted, as far as they were supported by the objective
               evidence and by the record as a whole. His impair-
               ments are limiting; however, not disabling. The rec-
               ord simply does not support [Raper’s] allegations of
               disability.
               The ALJ found Raper’s complaints credible only to the ex-
        tent that they adhered to his RFC determination that Raper could
        perform sedentary work. And the ALJ’s reason for partially dis-
        crediting Raper’s subjective complaints was the same as his reasons
        for discounting the November 4, 2015, medical opinion: his com-
        plaints were inconsistent with the medical record. Therefore, the
        ALJ considered Raper’s subjective complaints with the record as a
        whole and adequately explained his decision not to fully credit
        Raper’s alleged limitations on his ability to work. 17 See Dyer,
        395 F.3d at 1212.

        17 Raper also argues that we should apply the reasoning of our unpublished

        opinion, Martinez v. Commissioner of Social Security, No. 21-12116,
        2022 WL 1531582 (11th Cir. May 16, 2022) (per curiam). There, we held that
        the
               ALJ’s general statement that [the claimant’s] testimony regard-
               ing the extent of his pain and limitations was inconsistent with
               the record failed to provide an explicit and adequate explana-
               tion for discrediting this testimony. [And] the implication as
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        22-11103                   Opinion of the Court                                 33

                 to [the claimant’s] credibility was not obvious from the ALJ’s
                 opinion that merely summarized portions of the medical evi-
                 dence showing mild to moderate test results, which were not
                 necessarily inconsistent with [the claimant’s] descriptions of
                 his pain and limitations.
        Id. at *2.
            Raper’s argument is unavailing. Martinez is an unpublished case. “Our un-
        published opinions are not precedential, so they do not bind us . . . to any de-
        gree.” Patterson v. Ga. Pac., LLC, 38 F.4th 1336, 1346 (11th Cir. 2022). Even if
        Martinez were precedential, Raper’s case is distinguishable in two ways. First,
        as explained above, we disagree with Raper that the ALJ failed to provide an
        explicit and adequate explanation for discrediting his testimony. Second, also
        explained above, it was obvious which portions of Raper’s testimony the ALJ
        found credible.
             Moreover, in other unpublished decisions, we have found no error in sim-
        ilar factual circumstances. See Sampson v. Comm’r of Soc. Sec., 694 F. App’x 727,
        740 (11th Cir. 2017) (per curiam) (holding that the ALJ’s explanation—that the
        claimant’s statements about the intensity, persistence, and limiting effects of
        his symptoms “were not credible to the extent they were inconsistent with the
        RFC”—“was more than just a ‘broad rejection’”); Brown v. Comm’r of Soc. Sec.,
        442 F. App’x 507, 513–14 (11th Cir. 2011) (per curiam) (holding that the ALJ
        “considered [the claimant’s] subjective complaints [about the intensity and
        limiting effects of her symptoms] in light of the record as a whole and ade-
        quately explained his decision not to fully credit [the claimant’s] alleged limi-
        tations on her ability to work”); Flowers v. Comm’r of Soc. Sec., 441 F. App’x 735,
        743–45 (11th Cir. 2011) (per curiam) (holding that the ALJ did not err when he
        found the claimant’s testimony “credible only to the extent it was consistent
        with his RFC determination” and “[t]he ALJ’s reasons for partially discrediting
        [the claimant’s testimony] were the same as his reasons for discounting the
        opinions of [the claimant’s] treating and examining doctors, namely that their
        testimony was not supported by the medical record”).
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        34                    Opinion of the Court                22-11103

                                 IV. Conclusion
               Accordingly, we affirm the District Court’s judgment affirm-
        ing the SSA’s denial of Raper’s application for disability insurance
        benefits.
              AFFIRMED.