Approval rates
Judge Martinelli has maintained a lifetime approval rate of 47% over his 6 years on the bench. When compared to the latest reporting period, his approval rate is 12 percentage points lower than the Springfield MA office average and 11 percentage points lower than the national average of 58%. These figures are derived from a docket of 6,799 lifetime decisions, providing a stable view of his historical decision-making. 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 Martinelli'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 tenure, your judge's approval rate has shown fluctuations, beginning at 53% in 2016 before moving to 41% in 2017. Following this period, the rate reached 52% in 2020 before settling at 47% in 2021. This pattern suggests that while the judge's approach has varied, it has remained within a consistent range over his 6,799 lifetime decisions. The recent data reflects a continuation of this variable pattern of adjudication.
Preparing for an SSDI hearing
The guidance below applies to any SSDI hearing, not specifically to Judge Martinelli'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 Martinelli? Free, confidential — see if you qualify for SSDI.
Free Benefits ReviewAbout the Springfield MA hearing office
The Springfield MA hearing office serves you and other applicants throughout the region, managing a high volume of disability cases. With a bench of 6 judges, the office maintains a latest approval rate of 59%, which is higher than the national average. You can expect a formal administrative process focused on the medical evidence presented in your file. You can see the Springfield MA Hearing Office page for the full ALJ roster.
Other judges at this hearing office
The Springfield MA hearing office utilizes a workload-balancing algorithm to assign cases, meaning you cannot request a specific judge. Across the office's bench of 6 judges, lifetime approval rates range from 42% to 65%. This variance highlights why the specific judge assigned to your case is only one of many factors influencing your hearing. You can review the office's full roster on the Springfield MA Hearing Office page.
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.