Approval rates
Judge Pecoraro's 82% approval rate over the 12 months to July 31, 2026, is measured against the Queens hearing office rate of 76%, the New York state rate of 63%, and the national rate of 58%. These figures are based on 396 decisions within that window. These rates reflect the judge's recent activity rather than a fixed outcome for your claim.
SSA publishes no office- or national-level breakdown of fully favorable and denial rates. The 12 months are SSA's figures for this fiscal year to date plus the rest of the previous fiscal year; how we calculate them.
Approval rate over time
Year-over-year approval rate across Judge Pecoraro'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
Since 2016, Judge Pecoraro has issued 3,593 decisions. The approval rate has fluctuated over this period, reaching a peak of 86% in 2024 and a low of 75% in 2021. The most recent 12 months sit above the 80% approval rate recorded on the judge's full record since 2016. This pattern shows the variation in outcomes across the judge's docket over the last decade.
Preparing for an SSDI hearing
The guidance below applies to any SSDI hearing, not specifically to Judge Pecoraro'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.
About the Queens hearing office
The Queens hearing office is the most recent office on record for Judge Pecoraro, with the last recorded decision in July 2026. Over the 12 months to July 31, 2026, the office maintained an approval rate of 76%. The office's bench consists of 12 judges whose most recent office on record is this location.
Other judges whose most recent office on record is Queens
Among the 12 judges whose most recent office on record is the Queens hearing office, 6 judges decided cases here in SSA's latest file. These 6 judges range from 62% to 94% in their approval rates over the 12 months to July 31, 2026. The judge assigned to your hearing is determined by a workload-balancing algorithm.
Judges with similar approval rates
These active judges' approval rates over the same 12 months (July 26, 2025 – July 31, 2026) are closest to Judge Pecoraro's 82%. Four of them last decided cases in New York. With too few close matches there, the rest come from SSA's New York region.
- 81% Approval rate, last 12 months Linda A. Stagno
- 80% Approval rate, last 12 months Joani Sedaca
- 79% Approval rate, last 12 months John G. Farrell
- 78% Approval rate, last 12 months Michael W. Devlin
- 82% Approval rate, last 12 months Yeline Quinones-Regalado
Rates within 5 points of each other are hard to tell apart at a typical caseload, so treat these as judges with comparable records, not a ranking. See Judge Pecoraro and the three closest side by side →
Approval rates change with a lawyer
Source: U.S. Government Accountability Office, GAO-18-37. The 3× gap is a population-wide average across all judges; individual outcomes vary.
Frequently asked questions
Judge Pecoraro's 82% approval rate over the 12 months to July 31, 2026, is higher than the 76% average for the Queens hearing office during the same period. Among the 6 judges in SSA's latest file at this office, approval rates range from 62% to 94%. An attorney can help you prepare for the specific requirements of this hearing office.
Judge Pecoraro's approval rate has varied over the years, with an 80% average across 3,593 decisions since 2016. While the rate reached 86% in 2024, it has also seen lower periods such as 75% in 2021. An attorney can help you understand how these trends relate to your specific case.
No, you cannot request a specific judge. The Social Security Administration assigns cases using a workload-balancing algorithm to ensure efficiency. An attorney can help you prepare your case regardless of which judge is assigned to your hearing.
An approval rate is a statistical summary of past decisions and does not predict the outcome of your specific hearing. Your case's success depends primarily on the medical evidence and vocational testimony provided. An attorney can help you organize this evidence to present the strongest possible case.
