Approval rates
Judge Hixson currently holds a 67% approval rate in the latest reporting period, which is 12 percentage points higher than the Cleveland office average and 7 points above the national average. These figures are derived from a significant docket of 23,214 lifetime decisions, providing a stable statistical baseline for review.
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 Hixson'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, your judge's approval rate has fluctuated between 54% and 70% annually. The most recent data indicates an approval rate of 67%, which aligns closely with long-term historical performance. This stability suggests a consistent approach to case evaluation.
Preparing for an SSDI hearing
The guidance below applies to any SSDI hearing, not specifically to Judge Hixson'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 Hixson? Free, confidential — see if you qualify for SSDI.
Free Benefits ReviewAbout the Cleveland hearing office
The Cleveland (Ohio) Hearing Office serves a large population of applicants across the region, managing a high volume of disability cases annually. With an office-wide latest approval rate of 53%, the local bench handles complex medical and vocational evidence daily. You can see the Cleveland (Ohio) Hearing Office page for the full ALJ roster.
Other judges at this hearing office
The Social Security Administration uses a workload-balancing algorithm to assign cases, meaning the judge you are assigned is essentially random. Across the Cleveland office, lifetime approval rates among the 6 ALJs range from 44% to 65%. Because of this variance, understanding the office-wide environment is as important as reviewing your specific judge's history.
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.