Approval rates
Comparing a judge's performance requires looking at both their long-term history and recent trends. Judge Myers has presided over 18,883 lifetime decisions, providing a robust data set for analysis. While his lifetime rate is 56%, recent reporting shows how his decisions align with the broader Sacramento office and national benchmarks. 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 Myers'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 8 years on the bench, Judge Myers has shown a distinct evolution in his decision-making. His approval rates began at 47% in 2016 and 48% in 2017 before climbing to 63% between 2020 and 2022. The most recent data from 2023 shows an adjustment to 58%. This pattern reflects a period of stabilization following a notable rise in approvals during the middle of his tenure.
Preparing for an SSDI hearing
The guidance below applies to any SSDI hearing, not specifically to Judge Myers'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 Myers? Free, confidential — see if you qualify for SSDI.
Check My BenefitsAbout the Sacramento hearing office
The Sacramento Hearing Office serves a diverse population across Northern California, managing a high volume of disability claims. With 6 judges currently on the bench, the office maintains an office-wide latest approval rate of 65%. You can expect a formal environment where the focus remains on medical evidence and vocational testimony. You can see the Sacramento Hearing Office page for the full ALJ roster.
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 Sacramento office, lifetime approval rates among the 6 ALJs range from 56% to 75%. This variance highlights why understanding the specific requirements of the hearing process is vital regardless of the judge assigned. You can find more information on the Sacramento 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.