Approval rates
Judge French maintains a lifetime approval rate of 70%, which compares favorably to the Sacramento Hearing Office latest average of 65%. Her recent performance also tracks higher than both the California state average of 59% and the national average of 58%. With over 7,000 decisions on record, these data points offer a look at her historical decision-making. 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 French'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 her 4 years on the bench, Judge French has demonstrated a consistent approach to disability claims. Her approval rate was 69% in 2016, 72% in 2017, 72% in 2018, and 67% in 2019. This trend reflects a stable decision-making pattern that remains above current national benchmarks. These fluctuations are common and often result from shifts in the complexity of cases or the specific medical evidence presented.
Preparing for an SSDI hearing
The guidance below applies to any SSDI hearing, not specifically to Judge French'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 French? Free, confidential — see if you qualify for SSDI.
Free Benefits ReviewAbout the Sacramento hearing office
The Sacramento Hearing Office serves a large population of claimants across Northern California. This office manages a high volume of cases, with 6 judges currently presiding over the local docket. You can expect a professional environment where the focus remains on the medical and vocational evidence provided in your file. You can see the Sacramento Hearing Office page for the full ALJ roster.
Other judges at this hearing office
The Social Security Administration assigns cases to judges using a workload-balancing algorithm, meaning your assignment is essentially random. Within the Sacramento Hearing Office, lifetime approval rates among the bench range from 57% to 75%. Because of this variance, the judge you draw can influence the procedural flow of your hearing. You can view the full office roster 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.