Approval rates
Comparing a judge's performance requires looking at both their long-term history and recent trends. Judge Carlton has issued 12,395 lifetime decisions over his 10-year tenure. His latest approval rate of 47% is 15 percentage points below the national average of 58%. These figures represent historical data rather than a forecast for your specific case.
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 Carlton'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 10 years on the bench, Judge Carlton has seen his approval rates fluctuate, moving from 64% in 2017 to more recent levels. The data shows a period of lower approval rates between 2018 and 2023, followed by an increase in 2024 and 2025. This recent shift reflects a career-long adjustment to evolving SSA standards.
Preparing for an SSDI hearing
The guidance below applies to any SSDI hearing, not specifically to Judge Carlton'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 Carlton? Free, confidential — see if you qualify for SSDI.
Free Benefits ReviewAbout the Bronx hearing office
The Bronx Hearing Office manages a high volume of disability claims with a bench of 6 judges. The office currently maintains an approval rate of 59%, which is higher than the national average. You should be prepared for a rigorous review of your medical documentation and work history. You can see the Bronx Hearing Office page for the full ALJ roster.
Other judges at this hearing office
The Social Security Administration uses a workload-balancing algorithm to assign cases, meaning your assignment to a specific judge is essentially random. Within the Bronx Hearing Office, lifetime approval rates among the bench range from 43% to 68%. Because you cannot choose your judge, understanding the office-wide environment is as important as reviewing one individual's history.
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.