A Social Security Administration Appeals Council dismissal on timeliness grounds after a claimant has had an ALJ hearing on the merits is a final decision subject to judicial review.
The Social Security Act permits judicial review of "any final decision...after a hearing" by the Social Security Administration (SSA). Claimants for supplemental security income disability benefits under Title XVI of the Act must generally proceed through a four-step administrative process in order to obtain federal-court review: (1) seek an initial determination of eligibility; (2) seek reconsideration of that determination; (3) request a hearing before an administrative law judge (ALJ); and (4) seek review of the ALJ’s decision by the SSA's Appeals Council. A request for Appeals Council review generally must be made within 60 days of receiving the ALJ’s ruling; if the claimant misses the deadline and cannot show good cause for doing so, the Appeals Council dismisses the request.[1]
Petitioner Ricky Lee Smith’s claim for disability benefits under Title XVI was denied at the initial-determination stage, upon reconsideration, and on the merits after a hearing before an ALJ. The Appeals Council later dismissed Smith’s request for review as untimely. Smith sought judicial review of the dismissal in a federal district court, which held that it lacked jurisdiction to hear the suit. The Sixth Circuit affirmed, maintaining that the Appeals Council’s dismissal of an untimely petition is not a "final decision" subject to federal-court review.[1]
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