UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT EASTERN DISTRICT OF MISSOURI EASTERN DIVISION

LAQUITA R. DIECKMAN, ) ) Plaintiff, ) ) v. ) No. 4:24 CV 38 RWS ) FRANK BISIGNANO, ) Commissioner of Social Security, ) ) Defendant. )

AMENDED MEMORANDUM AND ORDER This matter is before the Court on Plaintiff’s motion to amend the order awarding attorney’s fees on July 17, 2025. The motion seeks to award the fees to Plaintiff’s counsel based on an assignment of fees by Plaintiff. On May 28, 2025, Plaintiff filed an Application for Attorney’s Fees. On March 31, 2025, the case was remanded to the Commissioner for further proceedings. Plaintiff moved the Court to grant her request for fees under the Equal Access to Justice Act,

. Plaintiff’s counsel submitted a request to be reimbursed in the amount of $5,912.69, which represents 25.2 hours of attorney work at $234.63 per hour. Defendant does not object to the award of these fees but notes that the fees should be made payable to Plaintiff under the holding in Astrue v. Ratliff,

(2010)(fees are awarded directly to prevailing plaintiff even though plaintiff's attorney may have a beneficial interest or contractual right to the fees). Accordingly, IT IS HEREBY ORDERED that Plaintiffs motion to amend my order dated July 18, 2025 [30] is GRANTED.

IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that Plaintiff's Application for Attorney’s Fees is GRANTED as follows: Plaintiff shall recover attorney’s fees from the Social Security Administration in the amount of $5,912.69.

IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that, under the terms of the Assignment of Fee Agreement executed by Plaintiff in this case (Doc. #31), the award shall be made payable to attorney Traci L. Severs unless Plaintiff has a pre-existing debt owed to the United States, in which case the award shall be made payable to Plaintiff and subject to offset to satisfy that debt.

RODNEY W. SIPPEL UNITED STATES DISTRICT JUDGE

Dated this 4th day of August, 2025