Approval rates
The data below compares the lifetime and recent performance of Douglas S. Stults against the benchmarks of the Oklahoma City office. While the lifetime approval rate stands at 69%, recent reporting periods show an 83% approval rate, which is 12 points above the current office-wide average of 71%. These figures are derived from thousands of hearings, providing a look at the judge's record. 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
Since 2016, the approval rate for Douglas S. Stults has shown an upward trajectory. Starting at 56% in 2016, the rate has trended higher, reaching 83% in the most recent reporting period. This shift reflects a pattern in how evidence is evaluated in recent years compared to the earlier record.
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.
About the Oklahoma City hearing office
The Oklahoma City hearing office serves you throughout the region. With a bench of 17 judges on record, the office maintains an office-wide latest-period approval rate of 71%. You can expect a standard administrative process focused on the medical evidence provided in your file.
Other judges at this hearing office
The Oklahoma City hearing office is staffed by 17 judges on record since 2016, 11 of whom are reported in the latest SSA data. Because the SSA uses a workload-balancing algorithm to assign cases, you cannot choose your judge, and approval rates across this bench vary significantly, ranging from 45% to 85% on a lifetime basis.
Approval rates change 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.
Frequently asked questions
Douglas S. Stults maintains a 69% lifetime approval rate, which sits within the 45% to 85% range observed across the 17 judges on record at the Oklahoma City office. An attorney can help you understand how your specific medical evidence aligns with the standards applied in this office.
Yes, the approval rate for Douglas S. Stults has trended upward since 2016, moving from 56% in the early part of the record to 83% in the most recent reporting period. If you are concerned about how these trends might impact your hearing, an attorney can help you prepare your case.
No, you cannot request a specific judge. The Social Security Administration assigns cases using a workload-balancing algorithm to ensure efficiency, meaning your assignment is random. An attorney can help you prepare regardless of your assigned judge.
An SSDI hearing is a non-adversarial proceeding where a judge reviews your medical records and hears testimony regarding your functional limitations. Having an attorney can help you prepare for the specific questions and procedures you will encounter during your hearing.
A judge's approval rate reflects past decisions and is not a prediction of how they will rule on your specific claim. Because every case is unique, an attorney can help you evaluate the strengths of your evidence and prepare for your hearing.