Approval rates
Comparing a judge's approval rate to office and national averages provides helpful context for your upcoming hearing. Judge Atchison's lifetime rate of 36% is measured against a current Phoenix office average of 56% and a national average of 58%. These figures are derived from a significant docket of 12,077 lifetime decisions, offering a stable look at historical trends. These aggregate rates describe past decisions rather than serving as predictions for your individual hearing.
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 Atchison'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
Judge Atchison has presided over 12,077 lifetime decisions during her 8-year tenure. Her yearly approval trends show notable movement, dipping to a low of 28% in 2021 before rising to 49% in 2023. The most recent data from 2024 shows a rate of 46%, suggesting a shift compared to her earlier years on the bench. This recent trend reflects a departure from her lower historical averages and indicates a more active approval pattern in the latest reporting period.
Preparing for an SSDI hearing
The guidance below applies to any SSDI hearing, not specifically to Judge Atchison'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.
Hearing with Judge Atchison? See if a free benefits review fits your case.
Free Benefits ReviewAbout the Phoenix hearing office
The Phoenix hearing office serves a large population of applicants across Arizona, managing a high volume of disability cases. With a bench of 6 judges, the office maintains a steady workflow to address the needs of local applicants. You can expect a formal process where medical documentation and vocational testimony are central to the outcome. You can visit the Phoenix Hearing Office page for the full ALJ roster.
Other judges at this hearing office
The Social Security Administration uses a workload-balancing algorithm to assign cases, meaning your judge is typically selected at random. Across the Phoenix hearing office, lifetime approval rates among the 6 judges range from 36% to 78%. Because you cannot choose your judge, it is important to focus on the strength of your medical evidence regardless of who is assigned to your case. For preparation purposes, the guidance remains consistent regardless of which judge you are assigned.
Your odds change dramatically with a lawyer
SSDI hearing approval rates — represented vs. on your own
Source: U.S. Government Accountability Office, GAO-18-37. The 3× gap is a population-wide average across all judges; individual outcomes vary.