20 C.F.R. § 404.953

The decision of an administrative law judge

Read at: eCFRecfr.gov CornellLII GovInfogovinfo.gov CasesGoogle Scholar

(a) General. The administrative law judge shall issue a written decision that gives the findings of fact and the reasons for the decision. The administrative law judge must base the decision on the preponderance of the evidence offered at the hearing or otherwise included in the record. The administrative law judge shall mail a copy of the decision to all the parties at their last known address. The Appeals Council may also receive a copy of the decision.

(b) Fully favorable oral decision entered into the record at the hearing. The administrative law judge may enter a fully favorable oral decision based on the preponderance of the evidence into the record of the hearing proceedings. If the administrative law judge enters a fully favorable oral decision into the record of the hearing proceedings, the administrative law judge may issue a written decision that incorporates the oral decision by reference. The administrative law judge may use this procedure only in those categories of cases that we identify in advance. The administrative law judge may only use this procedure in those cases where the administrative law judge determines that no changes are required in the findings of fact or the reasons for the decision as stated at the hearing. If a fully favorable decision is entered into the record at the hearing, the administrative law judge will also include in the record, as an exhibit entered into the record at the hearing, a document that sets forth the key data, findings of fact, and narrative rationale for the decision. If the decision incorporates by reference the findings and the reasons stated in an oral decision at the hearing, the parties shall also be provided, upon written request, a record of the oral decision.

(c) Recommended decision. Although an administrative law judge will usually make a decision, the administrative law judge may send the case to the Appeals Council with a recommended decision based on a preponderance of the evidence when appropriate. The administrative law judge will mail a copy of the recommended decision to the parties at their last known addresses and send the recommended decision to the Appeals Council.

[45 FR 52081, Aug. 5, 1980, as amended at 51 FR 303, Jan. 3, 1986; 54 FR 37792, Sept. 13, 1989; 69 FR 61597, Oct. 20, 2004; 73 FR 76944, Dec. 18, 2008; 75 FR 33168, June 11, 2010]

Notes of Decisions

Cited in 99 cases (41 in the last 5 years), 1974–2026 · leading case: Diana Phillips v. Michael J. Astrue, 671 F.3d 699 (8th Cir. 2012).

Sort: Relevance Newest Treatment

Diana Phillips v. Michael J. Astrue, 671 F.3d 699 (8th Cir. 2012). · cites it 3× “”) (internal quotation marks and citation omitted); see also 20 C.F.R. § 404.953 (a) (“The administrative law judge shall issue a written decision that gives the findings of fact and the reasons for the decision.”

Alice Gedatus v. Andrew Saul, 994 F.3d 893 (7th Cir. 2021). “But see 20 C.F.R. § 404.953 (requiring ALJ’s to issue written decisions and allowing oral decisions only in limited circumstances).”

Sharon Earley v. Comm'r of Soc. Sec., 893 F.3d 929 (6th Cir. 2018). “In each event, the question before the ALJ is whether a preponderance of the evidence supports a decision to award benefits under the five-step inquiry, 20 C.F.R. § 404.953 (a), and on review whether substantial evidence supports that finding, 42 U.”

Bowie v. Comm'r of Soc. SEC., 539 F.3d 395 (6th Cir. 2008). · cites it 2× “953(a). In a case in which the claimant's age indicates that he or she might well fall within a borderline age category, the ALJ's failure to note that the ALJ has considered whether a claimant falls within a borderline category and, if so, whether bumping the claimant up is…”

Clifford FLATFORD, Plaintiff-Appellant, v. Shirley S. CHATER, Comm'r of Soc. Sec., Defendant-Appellee, 93 F.3d 1296 (6th Cir. 1996). · cites it 3× “As stated above, 20 C.F.R. § 404.953 (a) provides that “the administrative law judge shall issue a written decision that gives the findings of fact and the reasons for the decision.”

William Ludwig v. Michael Astrue, 681 F.3d 1047 (9th Cir. 2012). “§ 405 (b)(1) (providing that if a hearing is held, the Commissioner of Social Security “shall, on the basis of evidence adduced at the hearing, affirm, modify, or reverse the Commissioner’s findings of fact and [initial disability] decision”) (emphasis added); 20 C.F.R. §…”

Danny CLIFTON, Plaintiff-Appellant, v. Shirley S. CHATER, Comm'r of Soc. Sec., Defendant-Appellee, 79 F.3d 1007 (10th Cir. 1996). “1986) (relying upon 20 C.F.R. 404.953 and 5 U.S.C. 557(c)[ (3)(A) ] to hold that an ALJ must explain his adverse decisions).”

Wiley E. JONES, Appellant, v. Shirley S. CHATER, Comm'r of Soc. Sec., Appellee, 65 F.3d 102 (8th Cir. 1995). · cites it 2× “See 20 C.F.R. § 404.953 (ALJ decision must fully state reasons for denying the claim).”

Rene Martinez v. Kilolo Kijakazi, 71 F.4th 1076 (7th Cir. 2023). “20 C.F.R § 404.953(a).2 “We review de novo the district court’s judgment aﬃrm- ing the Commissioner’s final decision, meaning we review the ALJ’s decision directly.”

Martin J. Giacone v. Richard S. Schweiker, Sec'y of Health & Human Servs., 656 F.2d 1238 (7th Cir. 1981). · cites it 2× “20 CFR § 404.953 — 404.954a (1979). Giacone, an elderly man with an eighth grade education, who pursued his claim through the administrative process without benefit of counsel, was not informed of the “good cause” extension regulations or that “good cause” was even an issue and…”

Rose E. Brown v. Otis R. Bowen, Sec'y, Dep't of Health & Human Servs., 794 F.2d 703 (D.C. Cir. 1986). “§ 557 (c); 20 C.F.R. § 404.953 (a). The judiciary can scarcely perform its assigned review function, limited though it is, without some indication not only of what evidence was credited, but also whether other evidence was rejected rather than simply ignored.”

Bettie Jo Cherry v. Margaret M. Heckler, Sec'y of Health & Human Servs., 760 F.2d 1186 (11th Cir. 1985). “§ 405 (b)(1); 20 C.F.R. § 404.953 ; Cowart v. Schweiker, 662 F.”

Show all 99 citing cases →

— 20 C.F.R. § 404.953(a) — 6 cases

Clifford FLATFORD, Plaintiff-Appellant, v. Shirley S. CHATER, Comm'r of Soc. Sec., Defendant-Appellee, 93 F.3d 1296 (6th Cir. 1996). “As stated above, 20 C.F.R. § 404.953 (a) provides that “the administrative law judge shall issue a written decision that gives the findings of fact and the reasons for the decision.”

DaSilva-Santos v. Astrue, 596 F. Supp. 2d 181 (D. Mass. 2009).

Ottis L. Green v. Donna E. Shalala, Sec'y of Health & Human Servs., 17 F.3d 1436 (10th Cir. 1994).

Geary v. O'Malley (N.D. Ill. 2024).

Annotations are extracted automatically from the opinions in the Syfert caselaw corpus and ranked by authority, recency, and treatment. Dots show Syfertize treatment of the citing case itself.