McKenzie Mary E. v. Harris, Patricia, Secretary of Health & Human Services of the United States, Mary McKenzie

OPINION OF THE COURT

JAMES HUNTER, III, Circuit Judge:

The appellant in this case (Mary McKenzie, also known as Mary Williams) seeks surviving children’s Social Security insurance benefits (“benefits”) for her two children based upon the earnings record of the deceased wage earner, William McKenzie (“the decedent”). A hearing was held before an Administrative Law Judge (“ALJ”) in Tulsa, Oklahoma, and the ALJ denied appellant’s claim on the ground that there was no marriage relationship between appellant and the decedent; thus, the children were not eligible for benefits. 1 After the Appeals…