Approval rates
Comparing a judge's lifetime performance against current office and national benchmarks provides a clearer picture of their decision-making history. While the national average approval rate currently sits at 58%, Judge Brand's lifetime rate is 49% based on a docket of 24,104 decisions. These figures help you understand the statistical environment of your hearing. Aggregate rates describe past decisions, not predictions for individual hearings.
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 Brand'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 her 10 years on the bench, Judge Brand has seen her approval rates fluctuate, moving from 50% in 2016 to 62% in 2025. Her career shows periods of stability followed by shifts in outcomes, which may reflect changes in the types of cases assigned or evolving evidence standards. The latest reporting period shows an approval rate of 59%. This trend suggests that while her historical average is 49%, recent decisions have trended upward.
Preparing for an SSDI hearing
The guidance below applies to any SSDI hearing, not specifically to Judge Brand'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 Brand? Free, confidential — see if you qualify for SSDI.
Free Benefits ReviewAbout the Jackson hearing office
The Jackson Hearing Office serves a wide population, managing a high volume of disability claims. With a bench of 4 judges, the office maintains an office-wide latest approval rate of 55%. You can expect a formal process focused on medical documentation and vocational testimony. You can visit the Jackson Hearing Office page for the full ALJ roster.
Other judges at this hearing office
The Social Security Administration assigns cases to judges using a workload-balancing algorithm, meaning you cannot choose your judge. Within the Jackson Hearing Office, lifetime approval rates among the 4 judges range from 45% to 60%. Because assignment is random, you should focus on building the strongest possible evidence for your specific medical condition. The guidance for your hearing 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.