Approval rates
Judge Collins has issued 13,642 lifetime decisions during a 10-year tenure. In the most recent reporting period, your judge's approval rate was 44%, which sits below the office average of 60% and the national average of 58%. These figures provide a statistical baseline for understanding historical decision-making tendencies. 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 Collins'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 the past decade, the approval rate for Judge Collins has shown notable variance, ranging from 13% in 2016 to 44% in 2025. While the lifetime average remains at 20%, the data indicates a shift in recent years, with approval rates trending upward since 2023. This pattern suggests that recent outcomes have diverged from the long-term historical baseline. Such fluctuations often reflect changes in the complexity of cases or the quality of evidence presented in the courtroom.
Preparing for an SSDI hearing
The guidance below applies to any SSDI hearing, not specifically to Judge Collins'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 Collins? Free, confidential — see if you qualify for SSDI.
Free Benefits ReviewAbout the Dallas Downtown hearing office
The Dallas Downtown Hearing Office serves a large population in Texas, managing a high volume of disability claims. With a bench of 6 judges, the office maintains an office-wide approval rate that reflects the diverse nature of the cases heard in this region. You can expect a formal process focused on the medical and vocational evidence supporting your claim. You can visit the Dallas Downtown 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 you cannot choose your judge. At the Dallas Downtown Hearing Office, lifetime approval rates among the bench range from 20% to 69%. This variation highlights why it is important to understand the specific environment of your assigned hearing office. You can view the Dallas Downtown Hearing Office page for more information on the local bench.
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.