Approval rates
Comparing a judge's history to broader benchmarks provides context for your upcoming hearing. While the national average approval rate currently sits at 58%, Judge Bucci maintains a lifetime rate of 35% over 18,757 decisions. This data reflects a decade of service on the bench. Aggregate rates describe past decisions, not 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 Bucci'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 Bucci has maintained a consistent decision pattern, with her approval rate holding steady at 35% for much of her tenure. While there was a notable shift in 2023 where approvals reached 46%, the most recent data shows a return to the 32% range. This stability suggests a predictable approach to case evaluation, emphasizing the importance of clear, objective medical documentation.
Preparing for an SSDI hearing
The guidance below applies to any SSDI hearing, not specifically to Judge Bucci'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 Bucci? A free benefit check tells you if you qualify.
Free Benefits ReviewAbout the Phoenix North hearing office
The Phoenix North Hearing Office serves claimants across Arizona. With a bench of 6 judges, the office manages a significant caseload to ensure timely processing of disability appeals. The office currently reports an approval rate of 55%, which provides a baseline for local trends. You can visit the Phoenix North Hearing Office page for the full ALJ roster.
Other judges at this hearing office
The Social Security Administration assigns cases using a workload-balancing algorithm, meaning the judge you are assigned is essentially random. Within the Phoenix North Hearing Office, lifetime approval rates among the bench range from 28% to 60%. Because this variance exists, understanding the general expectations of the office is helpful. For preparation purposes, the guidance is the same 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.