Approval rates
Comparing a judge's performance to broader benchmarks provides context for your upcoming hearing. Judge Grabeel maintains a lifetime approval rate of 79%, which stands in contrast to the 60% latest approval rate for the New York Hearing Office and the 58% national average. These figures are derived from a docket of 7,147 lifetime decisions accumulated over his tenure. Aggregate rates describe past decisions, not predictions 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 Grabeel'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 3 years on the bench, Judge Grabeel has demonstrated a consistent trend in his decision-making. His annual approval rates showed a steady progression, moving from 77% in 2016 to 83% by 2018. This upward trajectory reflects a stable pattern of evaluation across his 7,147 lifetime decisions. The recent data indicates that his approach to evidence and testimony has remained consistent throughout his time in New York.
Preparing for an SSDI hearing
The guidance below applies to any SSDI hearing, not specifically to Judge Grabeel'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 Grabeel? Free, confidential — see if you qualify for SSDI.
Free Benefits ReviewAbout the New York hearing office
The New York Hearing Office serves a diverse population across the region, managing a high volume of Social Security Disability Insurance claims. With a bench of 6 judges, the office maintains a latest approval rate of 60%. You should expect a formal process focused on medical evidence and vocational testimony. You can visit the New York Hearing Office page for the full ALJ roster.
Other judges at this hearing office
The Social Security Administration utilizes a workload-balancing algorithm to assign cases, meaning the judge you are assigned is essentially random. Within the New York Hearing Office, lifetime approval rates among the bench range from 37% to 82%. Because your case could be assigned to any of the 6 judges at this location, understanding the office-wide environment is as important as reviewing a single judge's history. Guidance for your hearing remains consistent 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.