Section 52 Use of Vocational Expert

• Library: Social Security Administration Practice and Procedure (2011 Ed.)

Banks v. Massanari, 258 F.3d 820 (8^th Cir. 2001), holds that VE testimony is not required at Step 4, see §49, supra, when the claimant retains the burden of proving that the claimant cannot perform prior work. After the burden shifts to the SSA Commissioner at Step 5, VE testimony is only required when the claimant has nonexertional impairments that make use of the Grids inappropriate. The testimony of a VE is relevant at Steps 4 and 5 of the Commissioner's sequential analysis, but has not been required at Step 4. Haley v. Massanari, 258 F.3d 742 (8^th Cir. 2001), examines whether the Commissioner carries the burden of showing that the claimant retained the physical RFC to perform work at specific exertional levels. There are circumstances in which an ALJ errs in relying solely on the Grids instead of the testimony of a VE. One circumstance exists when the claimant...