Approval rates
Comparing a judge's performance to broader benchmarks provides context for your upcoming hearing. Judge Butler maintains a lifetime approval rate of 62%, which stands 4 percentage points above the current national average of 58%. While his latest period approval rate of 63% aligns with the Dover office average, these figures are based on a significant docket of 19,154 lifetime decisions. 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 Butler'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 a decade on the bench, Judge Butler has seen his approval rates shift, moving from 84% in 2016 to 50% in 2021 before trending to 63% in the most recent period. This trajectory indicates that recent outcomes are aligned with his long-term historical average, providing a baseline for understanding his current approach to evidence.
Preparing for an SSDI hearing
The guidance below applies to any SSDI hearing, not specifically to Judge Butler'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 Butler? Free, confidential — see if you qualify for SSDI.
Free Benefits ReviewAbout the Dover hearing office
The Dover Hearing Office serves claimants throughout Delaware and the surrounding region. It is staffed by a team of judges who manage a high volume of disability claims annually. With an office-wide latest approval rate of 63%, the environment is focused on the evaluation of medical and vocational evidence.
Other judges at this hearing office
The Social Security Administration utilizes a workload-balancing algorithm to assign cases, meaning you cannot choose your judge. Within the Dover Hearing Office, lifetime approval rates among the 6 ALJs range from 42% to 91%. This variance highlights why understanding the general environment of your hearing office is useful.
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.