Approval rates
Judge Martin's approval rate is measured against the broader performance of the NHC Chicago office and national benchmarks. In the most recent reporting period, his approval rate of 63% stands 11 percentage points higher than the national average of 58%. With a docket spanning over a decade, these figures offer a statistically significant look at his decision-making history. Aggregate rates describe past decisions, not predictions for individual hearings.
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 Martin'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 Martin has maintained a consistent approach to disability claims. His approval rate has seen fluctuations, peaking at 79% in 2016 and settling into a stable range between 64% and 71% in recent years. The latest data shows a 63% approval rate, which remains well above the 51% office average for the NHC Chicago location. This pattern suggests a judge who evaluates evidence with a steady, established methodology.
Preparing for an SSDI hearing
The guidance below applies to any SSDI hearing, not specifically to Judge Martin'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 Martin? Free, confidential — see if you qualify for SSDI.
Check My BenefitsAbout the Nhc Chicago hearing office
The NHC Chicago hearing office serves a large population in Illinois, managing a high volume of disability claims. With a bench of 6 judges, the office operates under the Office of Hearings Operations to process cases efficiently. The office currently reports an approval rate of 51%, reflecting the complex nature of the claims handled in this region. You can see the NHC Chicago 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. Across the NHC Chicago office, lifetime approval rates among the bench range from 41% to 69%. Because you cannot choose your judge, understanding the office-wide environment is as important as reviewing an individual's history. For preparation purposes, the guidance is the same regardless of which judge you're 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.