Karapet Gasparyan v. Michael Astrue

NOT FOR PUBLICATION UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS FILED FOR THE NINTH CIRCUIT MAY 18 2012 MOLLY C. DWYER, CLERK U.S. COURT OF APPEALS KARAPET GASPARYAN, No. 10-56946 Plaintiff - Appellant, D.C. No. 2:07-cv-03268-PJW v. MEMORANDUM* MICHAEL J. ASTRUE, Commissioner of Social Security Administration, Defendant - Appellee. Appeal from the United States District Court for the Central District of California Patrick J. Walsh, Magistrate Judge, Presiding Argued and Submitted May 7, 2012 Pasadena, California Before: NOONAN and FISHER, Circuit Judges, and MUELLER, District Judge.** Petitioner Karapet Gasparyan appeals the district court’s denial of his motion for attorney’s fees under the Equal Access to Justice Act (“EAJA”), 28 U.S.C. § 2412(d)(1)(A). We affirm. * This disposition is not appropriate for publication and is not precedent except as provided by 9th Cir. R. 36-3. ** The Honorable Kim Mueller, United States District Judge for the Eastern District of California, sitting by designation. Despite the district court’s many invitations, Gasparyan failed to provide any meaningful rebuttal to the government's showing that its position was substantially justified. The district court’s denial of attorney's fees thus was not an abuse of discretion. See Gutierrez v. Barnhart, 274 F.3d 1255, 1258 (2001) (explaining that the decision whether to award fees under the EAJA, including the district court's conclusion that the government's position was substantially justified, is reviewed for abuse of discretion). AFFIRMED. 2