Approval rates
Judge Septer maintains a lifetime approval rate of 55% based on 15,885 total decisions. In the most recent reporting period, his 58% approval rate aligns with the national average but remains 7 percentage points below the current Fresno office average of 62%. These figures provide a statistical baseline for understanding how cases have been decided in his courtroom over the last nine years. 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 Septer'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 nine-year tenure, Judge Septer has shown a steady approach to disability adjudication. While his early years on the bench saw approval rates hovering near 51% to 52%, the data indicates a gradual upward trend in recent years, reaching 59% in both 2024 and 2025. This shift suggests a consistent pattern of evaluation that has evolved alongside changes in case volume and evidence standards. The recent period reflects a continuation of this stable, long-term decision-making trajectory.
Preparing for an SSDI hearing
The guidance below applies to any SSDI hearing, not specifically to Judge Septer'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.
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Free Benefits ReviewAbout the Fresno hearing office
The Fresno Hearing Office serves a large population across Central California, managing a high volume of SSDI claims. With a bench of six judges, the office maintains a collective focus on processing complex medical and vocational evidence. The office currently reports an approval rate of 62%, reflecting the broader regional trends in disability adjudication. You can see the Fresno Hearing Office page for the full ALJ roster.
Other judges at this hearing office
The Social Security Administration assigns cases to judges using a workload-balancing algorithm, meaning your assignment to Judge Septer is essentially random. Across the Fresno office, lifetime approval rates among the bench vary significantly, ranging from 37% to 73%. This variance highlights why understanding the general expectations of the office is more important than focusing on a single judge. For preparation purposes, the guidance is the same regardless of which judge you are assigned.
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.