Approval rates
Judge Ball maintains a lifetime approval rate of 67% across 16,602 lifetime decisions. In the most recent reporting period, his 68% approval rate sits 1 point above the Baltimore office average of 66% and 9 points above the national average of 58%. This data provides a statistical baseline for understanding how cases have been handled in his courtroom over the last decade.
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 Ball'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
Over his 10-year tenure, your judge's approval rate has fluctuated, moving from 56% in 2016 to a peak of 80% in 2024. The most recent data shows an approval rate of 71% in 2025. This pattern indicates that your judge's approach to case evaluation has evolved over his time on the bench.
Preparing for an SSDI hearing
The guidance below applies to any SSDI hearing, not specifically to Judge Ball'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 Ball? Free, confidential — see if you qualify for SSDI.
Check My BenefitsAbout the Baltimore hearing office
The Baltimore Hearing Office serves you throughout Maryland and the surrounding region. With a bench of 6 judges, this office manages a high volume of cases, maintaining an office-wide latest approval rate of 66%. You can expect a formal hearing environment where the focus remains on the medical and vocational evidence you present.
Other judges at this hearing office
The Social Security Administration uses a workload-balancing algorithm to assign cases, meaning your assignment to Judge Ball is essentially random. Across the Baltimore office, lifetime approval rates among the 6 judges range from 46% to 81%. Because each judge brings a unique perspective to the hearing process, understanding the office-wide environment is helpful.
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.