Approval rates
Comparing a judge's lifetime approval rate to current office and national benchmarks provides context for your upcoming hearing. While the national average currently sits at 58%, Judge Morholt's recent performance reflects a 54% approval rate. With a substantial docket of 18,286 lifetime decisions, these figures offer 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 Morholt'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 9-year tenure, Judge Morholt has maintained a consistent approach to disability claims. His approval rate has fluctuated within a narrow band, moving from 53% in 2017 to 53% in 2025. While there was a slight dip in 2019, the latest period shows a return to higher approval levels. This trend suggests a stable judicial philosophy that has remained steady throughout his career.
Preparing for an SSDI hearing
The guidance below applies to any SSDI hearing, not specifically to Judge Morholt'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 Morholt? Free, confidential — see if you qualify for SSDI.
Check My BenefitsAbout the Las Vegas hearing office
The Las Vegas Hearing Office serves you across Nevada, managing a high volume of cases. With 6 judges on the bench, the office maintains a latest approval rate of 60%. You can expect a professional environment focused on the rigorous evaluation of medical and vocational evidence. See the Las Vegas Hearing Office page for the full ALJ roster.
Other judges at this hearing office
The Social Security Administration assigns cases using a workload-balancing algorithm, meaning the judge you are assigned is essentially random. Within the Las Vegas Hearing Office, individual lifetime approval rates among the bench range from 35% to 68%. This variance highlights why you should 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.