Approval rates
Comparing a judge's performance to broader benchmarks provides context for your upcoming hearing. Judge Johnson maintains a 64% lifetime approval rate, which tracks 4 points above the Dallas Downtown office average and 6 points above the national average of 58%. These figures are derived from 9,703 lifetime decisions. 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 Johnson'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 her 7 years on the bench, Judge Johnson has maintained a consistent decision-making pattern. Her annual approval rates have remained stable, typically hovering in the low-to-mid 60% range. The long-term data reflects a judge whose approach to disability claims has not shifted drastically over time. This consistency suggests that the evidence presented in your file remains the primary driver of your outcome.
Preparing for an SSDI hearing
The guidance below applies to any SSDI hearing, not specifically to Judge Johnson'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 Johnson? Free, confidential — see if you qualify for SSDI.
Free Benefits ReviewAbout the Dallas Downtown hearing office
The Dallas Downtown Hearing Office serves a significant population of claimants across Texas. It is staffed by 6 administrative law judges who manage a high volume of cases to ensure timely processing. The office currently reports an average approval rate of 60%, reflecting the regional complexity of disability claims. You can visit the Dallas Downtown Hearing Office page for the full ALJ roster.
Other judges at this hearing office
The Social Security Administration assigns cases through a workload-balancing algorithm, meaning your assignment to a specific judge is essentially random. Within the Dallas Downtown office, lifetime approval rates among the 6-judge bench range from 49% to 69%. Because of this variance, understanding the broader office environment is useful, but the core requirements for proving your disability remain constant.
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.