Approval rates
Judge Gaffney maintains a lifetime approval rate of 57% based on 25,837 decisions. In the most recent reporting period, this rate reached 73%, which is 1 percentage point above the Phoenix Hearing Office average and 1 point below the national average. These figures provide a view of the judge's 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 Gaffney'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 Gaffney has demonstrated a shift in decision patterns. While early years saw approval rates fluctuating between 45% and 53%, the trend has moved upward significantly since 2023, with recent periods showing approval rates consistently above 70%. This recent uptick reflects a departure from the earlier baseline. These patterns suggest that the judge's current approach is distinct from the first half of their career.
Preparing for an SSDI hearing
The guidance below applies to any SSDI hearing, not specifically to Judge Gaffney'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 Gaffney? Free, confidential — see if you qualify for SSDI.
Free Benefits ReviewAbout the Phoenix hearing office
The Phoenix Hearing Office serves a large population across Arizona, managing a high volume of disability claims. With a bench of 6 judges, the office handles a diverse caseload that reflects the regional economic and health landscape. You can expect a formal hearing environment where medical documentation is the primary driver of success. See the Phoenix Hearing Office page for the full ALJ roster.
Other judges at this hearing office
The Social Security Administration assigns cases using a workload-balancing algorithm, meaning the judge you are assigned is essentially random. Within the Phoenix Hearing Office, lifetime approval rates among the bench range from 36% to 78%. Because you cannot choose your judge, you should focus on the strength of your medical evidence. For preparation purposes, the guidance is the same regardless of which judge you are assigned.
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.