Approval rates
When evaluating your potential outcome, it is helpful to look at how Judge Singh's decisions compare to broader benchmarks. While their lifetime approval rate stands at 53%, recent reporting shows a shift to 70%, compared to the current 67% office average and 58% national average. These statistics are derived from a significant docket of 20,688 lifetime decisions, providing a stable look at historical trends. Aggregate rates describe past decisions, not predictions for individual hearings.
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 Singh'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 10-year tenure, Judge Singh's approval patterns have shown a clear upward trajectory. Starting with a 42% approval rate in 2016, the data indicates a steady increase in favorable outcomes, reaching 70% in the most recent reporting period. This trend suggests that the approach to evaluating evidence has evolved over time. The recent uptick may reflect changes in case mix or the quality of evidence presented in recent hearings.
Preparing for an SSDI hearing
The guidance below applies to any SSDI hearing, not specifically to Judge Singh'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.
Other judges at this hearing office
The Social Security Administration assigns cases using a workload-balancing algorithm, meaning your assignment to a specific judge is essentially random. Across the White Plains hearing office, lifetime approval rates among the bench range from 50% to 74%. While you may be concerned about which judge you draw, the core requirements for proving disability remain consistent. You can find more information on the office's overall performance on the White Plains Hearing Office page.
Your odds change dramatically 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.