Rule 1.Review of Social Security Decisions Under 42 U.S.C. § 405(g)

Federal courts handle a large, steady stream of cases in which an individual asks a judge to review the denial of Social Security benefits. These cases share a common shape — review of a closed administrative record — yet they used to be litigated under the all-purpose civil rules. The Supplemental Rules for Social Security Review Actions, added in 2022, supply a streamlined, uniform procedure, and Rule 1 fixes their reach.

The rules govern an action under 42 U.S.C. § 405(g) for review, on the administrative record, of a final decision of the Commissioner of Social Security that presents only an individual claim. The regular Federal Rules of Civil Procedure continue to apply to such a proceeding except to the extent they are inconsistent with these supplemental rules — so the special rules control the distinctive steps, and the general rules fill in everything else.