Approval rates
Your judge's approval rate is based on a docket of 12,947 lifetime decisions accumulated over 7 years on the bench. Compared to the latest reporting period, this judge maintains an approval rate 15 percentage points higher than the New York Hearing Office average and 17 percentage points higher than the national average. These metrics offer a window into historical decision-making patterns, though they do not dictate the outcome of your individual claim.
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 Reich'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 a 7-year tenure, your judge has maintained a consistent approach to disability claims. Yearly trends show an approval rate of 61% in 2016, rising to 80% in 2017, 81% in 2018, 78% in 2019, 73% in 2020, 80% in 2021, and 70% in 2022. This history reflects a stable adjudication pattern that has remained above the 58% national average throughout your judge's time on the bench.
Preparing for an SSDI hearing
The guidance below applies to any SSDI hearing, not specifically to Judge Reich'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 Reich? Free, confidential — see if you qualify for SSDI.
Free Benefits ReviewAbout the New York hearing office
The New York Hearing Office serves a large population, managing a high volume of SSDI and SSI claims. With a bench of 6 judges, the office maintains an average approval rate of 60% in the latest reporting period. You should be prepared for a rigorous review of your medical evidence and vocational testimony. You can view the New York Hearing Office page for more information on the local roster.
Other judges at this hearing office
The Social Security Administration assigns cases to judges using a workload-balancing algorithm, meaning your assignment is essentially random. Within the New York Hearing Office, the 6 ALJs range from 37% to 82% in their lifetime approval rates. Because of this variance, the judge you are assigned can influence the context of your hearing, though the preparation required for your case remains consistent.
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.