Approval rates
Judge Terry has presided over 18,400 lifetime decisions during a 10-year tenure. In the most recent reporting period, your judge's approval rate reached 57%, which is 9 points below the Jacksonville Hearing Office average and 13 points below the national average. These figures provide a statistical baseline for understanding the judge's history, though aggregate rates describe past decisions rather than 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 Terry'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 the past decade, Judge Terry's approval rate has fluctuated, ranging from a low of 40% in 2023 to a high of 57% in 2025. The data shows a period of relative stability between 2020 and 2024, followed by a notable increase in the most recent reporting period. This recent shift reflects a departure from the long-term lifetime average of 45%.
Preparing for an SSDI hearing
The guidance below applies to any SSDI hearing, not specifically to Judge Terry'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 Terry? See if a free benefits review fits your case.
Check My BenefitsAbout the Jacksonville hearing office
The Jacksonville Hearing Office serves you and other claimants across Northern Florida, managing a high volume of disability cases. With a bench of 6 judges, the office maintains an active docket and follows standard SSA procedures for hearing scheduling and evidence review. You can expect a formal environment focused on medical documentation and vocational testimony. You can visit the Jacksonville Hearing Office page for the full ALJ roster.
Other judges at this hearing office
The Social Security Administration uses a workload-balancing algorithm to assign cases, meaning the judge you are assigned is essentially random. Within the Jacksonville Hearing Office, lifetime approval rates among the 6 judges range from 38% to 70%. Because of this variance, understanding the local environment is helpful for your preparation, which remains consistent regardless of your specific judge assignment.
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.