Approval rates
Judge Holiday maintains a lifetime approval rate of 61% based on 5,960 total decisions. In the most recent reporting period, this judge's rate sits 3 percentage points above the national average of 58% and 5 points above the state average of 56%, while remaining 6 points below the Oak Park office average of 67%. These figures provide a statistical baseline for understanding the judge's history. 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 Holiday'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 3-year tenure, Judge Holiday has presided over 5,960 decisions. The yearly trend shows a decline in approval rates, moving from 65% in 2016 to 53% by 2018. This shift suggests that your evidence requirements may have evolved in this courtroom over time.
Preparing for an SSDI hearing
The guidance below applies to any SSDI hearing, not specifically to Judge Holiday'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 Holiday? See if a free benefits review fits your case.
Free Benefits ReviewAbout the Oak Park hearing office
The Oak Park Hearing Office serves a significant volume of claimants throughout the Illinois region. With a bench of 6 judges, the office maintains a standard of case processing to manage the local caseload. The office currently reports an approval rate of 67%, reflecting the broader environment in which your hearing takes place. You can visit the Oak Park 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 your assignment to Judge Holiday is essentially random. Within the Oak Park office, lifetime approval rates among the 6 judges vary significantly, ranging from 50% to 80%. This variance highlights why it is important to focus on the strength of your medical evidence regardless of the specific judge 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.