Federal Court Of Appeals Denies Award Of Social Security Benefirs To Child Conceived One Year After Father died
Contact: Peter Deegan
In an opinion filed August 29, 2011, the Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals held that a child conceived through artificial insemination more than a year after her father's death did not qualify for Social Security insurance benefits as the dependent child of a deceased worker.
In June 2003, Patti Beeler filed an application for child’s insurance benefits on behalf of her child, B.E.B., who was born nearly two years after her father’s death. The Social Security Administration determined that B.E.B. was not entitled to benefits. Patti Beeler sued the Social Security Administration and the case was sent to the Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals for a final determination. The Court agreed with the Social Security Commissioner’s determination that, because the child was not entitled to inherit under Iowa state law or other statutory requirements, insurance benefits should be denied.
While the case was pending, the Iowa legislature passed a law that allows intestate succession rights to children conceived posthumously, but it did not allow for retroactive application of the law. Similar cases have been decided in favor of and against the Social Security Administration in other Courts of Appeals. One case may be presented to the United States Supreme Court if the petition to be heard is granted.
This case was prosecuted by the Department of Justice, the Social Security Administration, and the United States Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Iowa.
The Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals Opinion can be located at http://www.ca8.uscourts.gov and the case name is Patti Beeler v. Michael J. Astrue.
