Approval rates
Judge Dorman maintains a lifetime approval rate of 73%, which is higher than the 58% national average for Social Security disability hearings. In the most recent reporting period, the judge recorded an approval rate of 76%, outperforming the 66% average for the Greensboro office. These statistics are derived from a docket of 20,838 lifetime decisions. Aggregate rates describe past decisions rather than predicting outcomes for individual hearings.
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 Dorman'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 10-year tenure, Judge Dorman has demonstrated a consistent approach to disability adjudication. Starting with a 64% approval rate in 2016, the trend reached 76% in 2019 and remained strong through 2025. While there was a dip to 70% in 2024, the most recent data indicates a return to the 75% level. This pattern suggests a stable decision-making philosophy that has remained favorable to claimants over the last decade.
Preparing for an SSDI hearing
The guidance below applies to any SSDI hearing, not specifically to Judge Dorman'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.
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Check My BenefitsAbout the Greensboro hearing office
The Greensboro Hearing Office serves a large population across North Carolina, managing a high volume of disability claims with a bench of 6 ALJs. The office currently maintains an average approval rate of 66%. If you are appearing here, you should be prepared for a thorough review of medical records and vocational evidence. You can visit the Greensboro Hearing Office page for the full ALJ roster.
Other judges at this hearing office
The Social Security Administration assigns cases through a workload-balancing algorithm, meaning your assignment to a specific judge is essentially random. Within the Greensboro Hearing Office, lifetime approval rates among the bench range from 49% to 73%. This variance highlights why understanding the specific requirements of your case is more important than the identity of the judge. The guidance for your preparation remains consistent regardless of your assigned judge.
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.