Approval rates
Patrick Berigan maintains a lifetime approval rate of 54% based on 13,150 decisions. In the most recent reporting period, his approval rate was 4 percentage points higher than the Milwaukee office average, though it trailed the state and national averages by 4 percentage points. These figures provide a look at his historical decision-making, though they do not predict the outcome of your specific 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 Berigan'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 7 years on the bench, Patrick Berigan has seen his approval rates fluctuate. After an initial rate of 61% in 2016, the rate trended to 49% in 2019 before reaching 58% in 2022. This recent trend indicates a return to higher approval levels compared to his mid-tenure period.
Preparing for an SSDI hearing
The guidance below applies to any SSDI hearing, not specifically to Judge Berigan'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 scheduled?
About the Milwaukee hearing office
The Milwaukee Hearing Office serves claimants across Wisconsin, managing a high volume of cases with a bench of 6 judges. The office currently maintains an average approval rate of 50%. You can expect a standard hearing process focused on your medical evidence and vocational testimony.
Other judges at this hearing office
The Social Security Administration assigns cases using a workload-balancing algorithm, meaning your assignment to a specific judge is essentially random. Across the Milwaukee bench, lifetime approval rates for the 6 judges range from 42% to 54%. The fundamental requirements for proving your disability remain consistent regardless of which judge is assigned to your hearing.
Your odds change dramatically 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.