Rosa v. Bowen

Mirta Rosa (plaintiff), diagnosed with ulcerative colitis and uncontrolled diabetes, applied for disability benefits, and the Secretary of Health and Human Services (defendant) denied her claim. At her hearing before an administrative law judge (ALJ), which lasted under an hour, the ALJ repeatedly denied Rosa's procedural requests impatiently, pressured her attorney with time limits, compared the seriousness of her condition to his own mother's illnesses, and offered to find her disabled only if she would accept a later onset date. The ALJ then recommended denying benefits, and the Appeals Council adopted that recommendation. Rosa appealed, arguing the ALJ's conduct denied her due process and her statutory right to a full and fair hearing.