Gruber Passes

      Theresa Gruber, who was Deputy Commissioner for Hearings Operations, has passed away at the age of 54. No cause of death is listed.

     Gruber had been the subject of an article in the Washington Post on July 12 of last year. The article revealed that Gruber had displayed "significant anomalies" at work over the course of at least a year, including slurred speech in which she "appeared intoxicated,leaving meetings without notice, slouching in her chair and aggressive behavior.” Shortly thereafter, Gruber left her position.

Stanford Ross Passes

      Former Social Security Commissioner Stanford Ross has died at the age of 88. He served during the Carter Administration.

R-E-S-P-E-C-T

Aretha Franklin 1942-2018

Daniel Bernath Dies In Plane Crash

     Daniel Bernath, who used to be an attorney representing Social Security disability claimants, has died in a plane crash. Take a look at this old post on this blog. Bernath had threatened to sue me for libel if I didn't make that correction! To give you an idea of what he was like take a look at this old blog post as well as this one. I had great sympathy for the Administrative Law Judges who had to cope with such an obnoxious person. I don't understand how anyone comes to be like Bernath.

Former Social Security Subcommittee Passes

     Jim Bunning, former Chairman of the House Social Security Subcommittee, has died at age 85.

Kenneth Nibali Passes

     Kenneth Nibali, formerly Associate Commissioner of the Office of Disability at Social Security, passed away on April 4. He was 69.

Rudolph Patterson 1939-2016

     I regret to report that Rudolph Patterson of Macon, Georgia, who was one of the founders of the National Organization of Social Security Claimants Representatives (NOSSCR), has passed away. Rudolph was an invaluable part of NOSSCR for three decades. He trained thousands of attorneys in Social Security law and remained an inspiration to many.

     I first met Rudolph at the first NOSSCR Conference, help in New Orleans in the fall of 1979. I remember being disappointed that I got into town too late to take Rudolph up on his offer of dinner at Antoine's. I think he invited all the attendees to dinner. Rupolph was always generous with his time and his considerable expertise. He certainly helped me greatly.

     Rudolph was NOSSCR's Atticus Finch, the role model to which we all aspired and should still aspire.

Clinton Muir 1918-2015

     Clinton H. Muir, the retired chief of Social Security's Mid-Atlantic Program Service Center, has died at age 93.

CALJ Charles Boyer 1950 - 2015

     Former Social Security Chief Administrative Law Judge Charles Boyer passed away on January 20.

Millie Tyssowski Passes

     Millie Tyssowski, formerly Social Security's top budget official, has passed away at the age of 93.

Harry Clay Ballantyne Passes

     Harry Clay Ballantyne, Chief Actuary of the Social Security Administration from 1982 to 2000, passed away on May 2.

Clay Shaw 1939-2013

     Clay Shaw, a former Chairman of the House Social Security Subcommittee, has passed away following a long battle with lung cancer.

Charlotte ALJ Harper Passes

     Charlotte Administrative Law Judge Richard Harper has passed away. He was the Administrative Law Judge in Charge (ALJIC) of that office until the name of the job changed to Hearing Office Chief Administrative Law Judge (HOCALJ). He remained in that position until quite recently. It will give readers some idea of how long he managed that office that I interviewed with him for a staff attorney position in 1978!

Former ALJ Bisantz Passes

     Retired Administrative Law Judge (ALJ) Mary Bisantz passed away yesterday. Bisantz was Acting Chief ALJ at one time.

ALJ Augustus Martin 1944-2013

     Social Security Administrative Law Judge Augustus Martin of the Charleston, SC hearing office has passed away after suffering a stroke.

ALJ Dodds Passes

     I regret to report that Administrative Law Judge Ralph Dodds of Raleigh has passed away.

Llewellyn Washington Woolford Sr. Passes

     From the Baltimore Sun:

Llewellyn Washington Woolford Sr., a retired Social Security Administration attorney who was a past Howard County Human Relations Commission chairman, died of stroke complications Feb. 22 at his Columbia home. He was 81. ...

In 1956, he was sworn in as a lawyer in Annapolis. He then formed a law firm, Howard, Woolford and Leeds, on Pleasant Street.

In 1965, Mr. Woolford became an early African-American attorney in the Social Security Administration's Office of the General Counsel. He served for nearly 30 years, family members said.

Susan Daniels

Susan Daniels, who served as Social Security's Deputy Commissioner for Disability and Income Security Programs in the Clinton Administration, died earlier this week. She had helped with the Obama transition team for Social Security.

Retired ALJ Muirhead Passes

Retired Social Security Administrative Law Judge (ALJ) Jean Muirhead, who worked in Memphis, Falls Church and Nashville, has died at the age of 82. Before working at Social Security she served in the Mississippi Senate from 1968-1972. As a state Senator, she was a women's rights pioneer, authoring legislation allowing women to serve on juries in Mississippi and appointing the first girl to serve as a page in the Mississippi legislature.

Death Of Retired ALJ David Hubbard

Retired Social Security Administrative Law Judge David Hubbard of Forth Smith, Arkansas has passed away.