Approval rates
Judge Buck maintains a lifetime approval rate of 66%, which compares to the Sacramento Hearing Office average of 65% and the national average of 58%. These statistics are derived from 11,815 lifetime decisions over her 6-year tenure. Aggregate rates describe past decisions rather than predicting your individual hearing outcome.
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 Buck'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 6 years on the bench, Judge Buck has shown a consistent decision-making pattern. Her approval rate was 58% in 2016, 67% in 2017, 66% in 2018, 67% in 2019, 66% in 2020, and 75% in 2021. This trend reflects her approach to case evidence over time, though your outcome depends on the strength of your medical evidence.
Preparing for an SSDI hearing
The guidance below applies to any SSDI hearing, not specifically to Judge Buck'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 Buck? Free, confidential — see if you qualify for SSDI.
Free Benefits ReviewAbout the Sacramento hearing office
The Sacramento Hearing Office serves a large population across California, managing a high volume of disability claims. With a bench of 6 judges, this office handles complex cases involving diverse medical and vocational backgrounds. The office currently maintains an approval rate of 65%.
Other judges at this hearing office
The Social Security Administration uses a workload-balancing algorithm to assign cases, meaning your assignment to Judge Buck is essentially random. The Sacramento Hearing Office features a bench of 6 judges with lifetime approval rates ranging from 57% to 75%. You can find more information on the Sacramento Hearing Office page.
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.