Approval rates
Comparing approval rates requires looking at consistent timeframes. While your judge's 51% approval rate on record since 2016 provides a long-term view, his latest-period approval rate of 47% is best compared against the office, state, and national benchmarks for the same period. With 4,512 decisions on record, the data provides a clear look at his decision-making history.
Office- and national-level breakdowns of fully favorable vs denial rates aren't currently published by SSA in the per-office disposition data. The judge's own breakdown is the detail we have today.
Approval rate over time
Year-over-year approval rate across Judge Ashford's docket. Annual rates fluctuate with the mix of cases SSA assigns; the longer-run pattern is more informative than any single year.
Decision pattern
Since 2016, your judge's approval rate has fluctuated. After a high of 65% in 2017, the rate shifted before reaching 61% in 2024. The most recent fiscal year-to-date figure of 47% reflects a return toward the long-term average.
Preparing for an SSDI hearing
The guidance below applies to any SSDI hearing, not specifically to Judge Ashford's bench. Judge-specific preparation guidance requires a corpus of public Appeals Council decisions involving each judge, which we haven't built yet.
- Bring a clean treating-physician record. Longitudinal primary-care or specialist notes spanning the disability period, with consistent symptom documentation, are typically the strongest evidence at hearing. A single month's records usually aren't enough.
- Don't rely on consultative exams alone. If your medical evidence is built primarily around a one-time CE finding, expect detailed questioning. Supplement with treating-source statements where possible.
- Prepare for daily-activity questions. Have honest, specific answers about a typical day. Answers that conflict with the medical record (in either direction) tend to hurt credibility.
- Expect transferable-skills probing. A vocational expert will usually testify about jobs available to someone with your limitations. Your representative should be prepared to cross-examine.
About the Toledo OH hearing office
The Toledo OH hearing office serves you throughout the region. As of the most recent office on record in July 2026, this office maintains a bench of 10 judges. The office-wide latest-period approval rate is 54%.
Other judges whose most recent office on record is Toledo OH
The Social Security Administration uses a workload-balancing algorithm to assign cases, meaning the judge you are assigned is essentially random. There are 10 judges whose most recent office on record is this one. Approval rates across this bench range from 30% to 77% on their since-2016 records.
Approval rates change with a lawyer
Source: U.S. Government Accountability Office, GAO-18-37. The 3× gap is a population-wide average across all judges; individual outcomes vary.
Frequently asked questions
Judge Ashford has an approval rate of 51% on record since 2016. This sits within the 30% to 77% range observed among the 10 judges whose most recent office on record is the Toledo OH hearing office. An attorney can help you understand how to prepare your evidence for this specific bench.
Yes, the approval rate has fluctuated over time. It reached a peak of 65% in 2017 and saw a recent high of 61% in 2024, compared to the 47% approval rate seen in the latest reporting period. An attorney can help you evaluate how these trends might impact your specific case strategy.
No, you cannot choose your judge. The Social Security Administration uses a random workload-balancing algorithm to assign cases to judges at the Toledo OH hearing office. Because you cannot select your judge, it is important to be prepared for any outcome. An attorney can help you prepare for your hearing regardless of the judge assigned.
An SSDI hearing is a formal proceeding where a judge reviews your medical evidence and hears your testimony. You will likely be asked questions about your work history and how your impairments limit your daily activities. An attorney can help you prepare your testimony and organize your medical records for the hearing.
An approval rate is a statistical summary of past decisions and does not predict the outcome of your specific hearing. Your case's success depends primarily on the quality of your medical evidence and how well it meets SSA's definition of disability. An attorney can help you build a strong case that addresses the specific requirements of the law.
