Approval rates
Judge Grunberg's 45% lifetime approval rate is based on 4,844 lifetime decisions. In the most recent reporting period, her approval rate was 48%, which is 4 percentage points below the NHC Baltimore office average and 13 percentage points below the national average of 58%. These figures provide a statistical snapshot of past activity rather than a prediction for your specific case.
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 Grunberg'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 10 years on the bench, Judge Grunberg has seen fluctuations in her approval patterns. While her early years showed approval rates in the low 40s, she experienced a peak of 59% in 2020. The most recent data shows a 53% approval rate in 2025, reflecting the evolving nature of case evidence and the specific legal standards applied to each claim.
Preparing for an SSDI hearing
The guidance below applies to any SSDI hearing, not specifically to Judge Grunberg'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.
Have a hearing with Judge Grunberg? Free, confidential — see if you qualify for SSDI.
Check My BenefitsAbout the Nhc Baltimore hearing office
The NHC Baltimore Hearing Office serves claimants across Maryland and the surrounding region. With an office-wide latest approval rate of 49%, the environment is focused on managing a high volume of disability claims. You can visit the NHC Baltimore 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 NHC Baltimore office, lifetime approval rates among the 6 judges range from 45% to 81%. Because of this variance, the judge you draw can influence the procedural flow of your hearing.
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.