Approval rates
Judge Stults maintains a lifetime approval rate of 67%, a figure derived from 23,636 lifetime decisions over a decade of service. In the most recent reporting period, your approval rate reached 80%, which is 9 percentage points higher than the national average of 58%. These figures provide a statistical snapshot of the judge's history at the Oklahoma City Hearing Office. 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 Stults'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 10 years on the bench, the approval rate for Judge Stults has shown an upward trajectory. Starting at 57% in 2016, the rate has trended higher, reaching 80% in 2025. This recent performance represents a shift from the earlier years of the judge's tenure. The latest period reflects a continuation of this pattern, which may be influenced by changes in case evidence or the specific types of claims assigned to the docket.
Preparing for an SSDI hearing
The guidance below applies to any SSDI hearing, not specifically to Judge Stults'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 Stults? See if a free benefits review fits your case.
Free Benefits ReviewAbout the Oklahoma City hearing office
The Oklahoma City Hearing Office serves a broad region, managing a high volume of disability claims with a bench of 6 judges. The office currently maintains an approval rate of 73%, reflecting the local administrative environment. You should be prepared for a thorough review of medical evidence and vocational testimony. You can visit the Oklahoma City Hearing Office page for the full ALJ roster.
Other judges at this hearing office
The Social Security Administration assigns cases through a workload-balancing algorithm, meaning your assignment to a specific judge is essentially random. Across the Oklahoma City Hearing Office, lifetime approval rates among the bench range from 43% to 79%. Because every judge brings a different perspective to the hearing room, understanding the office-wide environment is helpful for your preparation.
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.