Seago v. O'Malley, No. 23-40001 (5th Cir. 2024)
Annotate this Case
This case arose from an appeal against the grant of summary judgment by a district court on a claim related to disability benefits. The appellant, Emily Seago, had contended that Nancy Berryhill was unlawfully serving as the acting Social Security Commissioner in July 2018 when she ratified the appointment of the Administrative Law Judge who later denied Seago’s claim.
The United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit rejected Seago's argument and affirmed the district court’s grant of summary judgment. The court held that Berryhill was lawfully serving as Acting SSA Commissioner under 5 U.S.C. § 3346(a)(2) when she ratified the appointments of all SSA Administrative Law Judges in July 2018.
The court noted that 5 U.S.C. § 3346(a) provides for two independent periods of acting service, during the 210-day period following a vacancy, and for the duration of a nomination's pendency in the Senate. The court found that these periods can operate independently, as indicated by the use of the word "or" to separate the two subsections. The court noted that the statutory text does not suggest that service under one subsection excludes someone from also serving under the other.
The court also found that this interpretation aligned with the statutory purpose, providing an incentive for the President to submit timely nominations without denying vital public services to the American people due to delays in the Senate confirmation process.
Some case metadata and case summaries were written with the help of AI, which can produce inaccuracies. You should read the full case before relying on it for legal research purposes.
This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.