Schoenfeld v. Apfel

• Decision Date: 11 January 2001
• Docket Number: No. 00-2261,00-2261
• Citation: 237 F.3d 788
• Parties: (7th Cir. 2001) Sheryl Smith Schoenfeld, for herself and on behalf of Charles Mandeville, Kathleen Mandeville, and Jocelyn Mandeville, Plaintiff-Appellant, v. Kenneth S. Apfel, Commissioner of Social Security, Defendant-Appellee
• Court: U.S. Court of Appeals — Seventh Circuit

Page 788

237 F.3d 788 (7th Cir. 2001)

Sheryl Smith Schoenfeld, for herself and on behalf of Charles Mandeville, Kathleen Mandeville, and Jocelyn Mandeville, Plaintiff-Appellant, v. Kenneth S. Apfel, Commissioner of Social Security, Defendant-Appellee.

No. 00-2261

In the United States Court of Appeals For the Seventh Circuit

Argued December 4, 2000

Decided January 11, 2001

Appeal from the United States District Court for the Western District of Wisconsin.

No. 99 C 368--Barbara B. Crabb, Judge.

[Copyrighted Material Omitted] Before Flaum, Chief Judge, and Diane P. Wood and Williams, Circuit Judges.

Flaum, Chief Judge.

After her husband passed away, Sheryl Schoenfeld sought child's benefits on behalf of her three children, in addition to mother's benefits and a lump sum death benefit for herself. After an administrative hearing determined that the children were entitled to child's benefits on the wage earner's record, and that she was entitled to mother's benefits, the Appeals Council reversed, holding that the evidence did not support a finding that the wage earner fathered the children. The Appeals Council decision, which is considered the final decision of the Commissioner of Social Security, was appealed to the District Court for the Western District of Wisconsin, which granted summary judgment in favor of the Commissioner. Thereafter, Schoenfeld appealed the district court's decision to this Court, arguing that the Appeals Council's findings are not supported by substantial evidence, and that the Council made errors of law. For the reasons stated herein, we affirm the district court's grant of summary judgment.

I. BACKGROUND

The wage earner, Clarence Schoenfeld ("Clay"), born on December 12, 1918, was a college professor at the University of Wisconsin. In July of 1969, Clay wed Sheryl Smith ("Sheryl"), a graduate student at the University. Though Clay had three children from a previous marriage, at the time of their nuptials, Clay informed Sheryl that he did not wish to have any additional children; a request that Sheryl initially acquiesced to. At some point though, Sheryl began to waver. In 1978, Sheryl moved out of Clay's residence, and inquired into the possibilities of artificial insemination and adoption. However, she was rejected for both.

In 1979, while vacationing in Rome, Sheryl became acquainted with a self-declared CIA operative and native Australian, Michael Mandeville. During a dinner conversation, Mandeville conveyed to Sheryl that he was interested in having children, but believed that because he was a covert agent for the CIA operating in Rome, he was in no position to be a parent in a "traditional" way. Eventually, the two arrived at a symbiotic arrangement whereby Mandeville agreed to supply his sperm to Sheryl for insemination purposes, and Sheryl agreed to give any resulting offspring the Mandeville surname.

Shortly thereafter, Sheryl inseminated herself, using a syringe filled with Mandeville's sperm. According to Sheryl, Clay knew of and consented to this attempt at pregnancy. Sheryl became pregnant and on October 10, 1980, gave birth to Charles Mandeville. Though Michael Mandeville and Sheryl were never married, the birth certificate lists Mandeville as Sheryl's husband. During the time period in which Charles was conceived, Clay and Sheryl continued their conjugal relationship, relying on the birth control techniques of "rhythm" and "withdrawal."

On November 24, 1980, a little over a month after the birth of Charles, Sheryl and Clay entered into a legal separation. The Judgment of Legal Separation decreed that "the child, Charles Smith (sic), born August 10, 1980, to petitioner Sheryl Stateler Smith, is not the child of the marriage and the joint petitioner, Clarence A. Schoenfeld, is not the father." Subsequent to the separation decree, Sheryl and Clay continued to have sexual relations, as well as to hold themselves out publically as husband and wife. Furthermore, Clay continued to provide financial support to Sheryl, including, but not limited to, making mortgage payments for Sheryl.

In early 1982, Sheryl once more inseminated herself with Mandeville's sperm, and on December 16, 1982, Kathleen Mandeville was born. Again, Michael Mandeville was listed as the husband, and Clay and Sheryl had relations during the conceptive period. In 1983, as a result of his age and poor health, Clay moved into and thereafter resided at a retirement community. Nonetheless, Clay continued to spend time with Sheryl at their residence, and the couple never filed for divorce. Also in 1983, Clay applied for retirement benefits, stating on his application that he had no natural children, adopted children or stepchildren who were at that time under the age of 18. On May 17, 1985, a third child named Jocelyn Mandeville was born after employment of the same purported "homemade artificial insemination technique." Once again, Michael Mandeville was listed as Sheryl's husband on the birth certificate, and Clay had sexual relations with Sheryl during the conceptive period. Testing (DNA or blood) to determine the paternity of the children has never been conducted.

To this date, it does not appear that Mandeville ever provided financial or emotional support to Charles, Kathleen or Jocelyn. However, the record indicates that all three children were covered under Clay's insurance policy, and were supported emotionally by Clay. In October 1990, though he still resided at a retirement community, Sheryl and Clay renewed their wedding vows in the presence of family and friends. Five years later, on February 24, 1996, Clay passed away.

In April of 1996, Sheryl filed applications for child's benefits on behalf of Charles, Kathleen, and Jocelyn Mandeville based on Clay's earning record. Additionally, Sheryl filed for mother's benefits and lump sum death benefits for herself. Her applications were denied initially and again upon reconsideration. At Sheryl's request, an administrative hearing was held on May 21, 1998. The Administrative Law Judge's ("ALJ") decision, dated September 23, 1998, found (1) the three children to be entitled to child's benefits; (2) Sheryl to be entitled to mother's benefits; and (3) Sheryl not to be entitled to the lump sum death benefits, as she was not living with the wage earner at the time of his death. The ALJ's decision was based on his finding that there was no clear and convincing evidence to rebut the presumption under Wisconsin law that a child born to a married mother is presumed to be a marital child.

On April 6, 1999, the Appeals Council reopened the matter, and proposed to revise the ALJ decision. Though Sheryl objected, on April 28, 1999, the Appeals Council issued a decision reversing the ALJ: finding that Sheryl was not entitled to the lump sum death benefits, and that the children and Sheryl were not entitled to child's and mother's benefits on the wage earner's record. Specifically, the Appeals Council found that a clear and satisfactory preponderance of the evidence upset the presumption that Clay was the natural father of Charles Mandeville, and that because of Clay and Sheryl's separation, no presumption applied to Kathleen and Jocelyn. The Council further noted that Clay referred to himself and was considered by the children to be their stepfather instead of their natural father. In addition to finding that Charles, Kathleen, and Jocelyn were not the natural children of the wage earner, the Appeals Council expressly found the children not to be Clay's stepchildren either. That finding was based on the Council's interpretation of 20 C.F.R. sec. 404.357 to mean that a child is a wage earner's stepchild only if the wage earner married the child's mother at a time when the relationship of parent and child already existed between the mother and child.

On June 3, 1999, Sheryl appealed the Appeals Council decision to the United States District Court for the Western District of Wisconsin.¹ On February 9, 2000, the district court entered summary judgment affirming the final decision of the Commissioner. Sheryl now appeals to this Court, arguing, in large part, that the Commissioner's evidentiary findings are not supported by substantial evidence, and that the Commissioner's decision incorrectly applied Wisconsin law.

II. DISCUSSION

A. Standard of Review

We review a district court's grant of summary judgment de novo. Green v. Shalala, 51 F.3d 96, 99 (7th Cir. 1995). With regard to final decisions of the Commissioner of Social Security,² our de novo review dictates that we apply the district court's standard of review, and uphold the Commissioner's decision if the findings of fact are supported by substantial evidence and no error of law occurred. See Cannon v. Apfel, 213 F.3d 970, 974 (7th Cir. 2000); see also 42 U.S.C. sec. 405(g) ("The findings of the Commissioner of Social Security as to any fact, if supported by substantial evidence, shall be conclusive."). In determining whether substantial evidence exists, we review the record as a whole. However, we do not substitute our judgment for that of the Commissioner "by reconsidering facts, reweighing evidence, resolving conflicts in evidence, or deciding questions of credibility." Williams v. Apfel, 179 F.3d 1066, 1071-72 (7th Cir. 1999); see Richardson v. Perales, 402 U.S. 389, 399-401 (1971). In order for this Court to uphold a decision of the Commissioner, the standard requires that there be more than a scintilla of proof in support of that decision. Cannon, 213 F.3d at 974. But, "substantial evidence requires no more than such relevant evidence as a reasonable mind might accept as adequate to support a conclusion." Diaz v. Chater, 55 F.3d 300, 305 (7th Cir. 1995) (internal quotation omitted).

Pursuant to the Social Security Act, every child of a worker who dies fully (or currently) insured is entitled to child's insurance benefits, assuming all other prerequisites are met. 42 U.S.C. sec. 402(d)(1). The...