Approval rates
Comparing a judge's performance to broader benchmarks provides context for your upcoming hearing. Judge Nestler maintains a lifetime approval rate of 45%, which currently tracks 13 percentage points below the national average of 58% and 20 points below the Dallas North office average. These figures are derived from 5,661 lifetime decisions, offering a view of her tenure. 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 Nestler'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 her 3 years on the bench, Judge Nestler has seen her approval rate shift from 60% in 2023 to 41% in 2025. This trend indicates a shift in case evaluation in recent years compared to her early tenure. While the latest 40% approval rate reflects a departure from her lifetime average, it remains a consistent feature of her current docket. This pattern suggests that the quality and presentation of your medical evidence are critical in her courtroom.
Preparing for an SSDI hearing
The guidance below applies to any SSDI hearing, not specifically to Judge Nestler'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 Nestler? Free, confidential — see if you qualify for SSDI.
Check My BenefitsAbout the Dallas North Oho hearing office
The Dallas North Hearing Office serves a large population of applicants across Texas, managing a high volume of disability appeals. With a bench of 5 judges, the office maintains a latest-period approval rate of 65%, which is higher than the national average. If you are appearing here, you should be prepared for a thorough review of your medical records and vocational history. You can see the Dallas North 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 Judge Nestler is essentially random. Across the Dallas North Hearing Office, lifetime approval rates among the 5 judges range from 24% to 88%. This variance highlights why the specific judge assigned to your case is only one variable in a complex process. You can review the Dallas North Hearing Office page for more information on the office's broader trends.
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.