Approval rates
Comparing a judge's lifetime approval rate against current office and national benchmarks provides a clear view of their decision-making history. Judge Schum has maintained a consistent record over 10 years on the bench, with a lifetime approval rate of 28% based on 18,325 decisions. This data reflects a significant volume of cases, offering a stable statistical baseline for your review. 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 Schum'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 decade of service, Judge Schum has presided over 18,325 decisions, showing a steady pattern in case outcomes. While the approval rate has fluctuated year-over-year, the recent period shows a 28% approval rate, which remains consistent with the judge's long-term historical trend. This stability suggests a predictable approach to evaluating your disability claim. The current data reflects a continuation of this established pattern in the Phoenix North Hearing Office.
Preparing for an SSDI hearing
The guidance below applies to any SSDI hearing, not specifically to Judge Schum'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 Schum? Free, confidential — see if you qualify for SSDI.
Free Benefits ReviewAbout the Phoenix North hearing office
The Phoenix North Hearing Office serves a large population of claimants across Arizona, managing a high volume of SSDI and SSI cases. With 6 judges on the bench, the office maintains a latest approval rate of 55%, which provides a broader context for your local hearing environment. You should expect a rigorous review process focused on your medical documentation and vocational evidence. You can view the full ALJ roster on the Phoenix North Hearing Office page.
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 Phoenix North office, lifetime approval rates among the 6 ALJs range from 28% to 60%. This variation highlights why understanding the specific tendencies of your assigned judge is a standard part of your case preparation. You can find more information on the Phoenix North 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.