Approval rates
Comparing a judge's performance to broader benchmarks helps provide context for your upcoming hearing. Judge Malfa maintains a lifetime approval rate of 87% based on 12,906 decisions, which stands in contrast to the latest national approval rate of 58%. These figures are derived from a decade of service, offering a robust sample size for analysis.
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 Malfa'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 10 years on the bench, Judge Malfa has maintained a consistent pattern of approvals. His yearly trend shows a stable high-approval trajectory, with recent data from 2023 through 2025 reflecting rates between 91% and 100%. This consistency suggests a steady approach to evaluating evidence and disability claims. The latest period indicates a continuation of this long-term pattern, which remains significantly higher than the office-wide average.
Preparing for an SSDI hearing
The guidance below applies to any SSDI hearing, not specifically to Judge Malfa'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 Malfa? See if a free benefits review fits your case.
Check My BenefitsAbout the Manchester hearing office
The Manchester Hearing Office serves you across New Hampshire and the surrounding region. It is staffed by a team of judges who manage a high volume of disability appeals. The office currently reports a latest approval rate of 59%, which serves as a baseline for the local jurisdiction.
Other judges at this hearing office
The Social Security Administration utilizes a workload-balancing algorithm to assign cases, meaning your assignment to a specific judge is essentially random. Within the Manchester Hearing Office, lifetime approval rates among the bench range from 46% to 87%. Because you cannot choose your judge, understanding the office environment is a vital part of your preparation.
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.