Approval rates
This table compares Luke Woltering's approval rates against office, state, and national benchmarks over the 12 months to July 31, 2026. These figures provide a statistical view of recent activity compared to peers in the same window. With 3,749 total decisions on record since 2016, the data offers a significant sample size for review.
SSA publishes no office- or national-level breakdown of fully favorable and denial rates. The 12 months are SSA's figures for this fiscal year to date plus the rest of the previous fiscal year; how we calculate them.
Approval rate over time
Year-over-year approval rate across Judge Woltering'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, Luke Woltering has issued 3,749 decisions. The yearly approval rate has fluctuated, showing a peak in 2016 followed by a decline through 2021, before rising again in 2024. The most recent 12 months sit below the record since 2016.
Preparing for an SSDI hearing
The guidance below applies to any SSDI hearing, not specifically to Judge Woltering'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 Elkins Park hearing office
The Elkins Park Hearing Office serves you in Pennsylvania and the surrounding region. As of the most recent data, 24 judges have this location as their most recent office on record. The office maintained a 61% approval rate over the 12 months to July 31, 2026.
Other judges whose most recent office on record is Elkins Park
The Social Security Administration assigns cases through a workload-balancing algorithm, meaning the judge assigned to your hearing is essentially random. Approval rates vary across the bench, with the 10 judges who decided cases here in SSA's latest file ranging from 50% to 75% over the 12 months to July 31, 2026. There are 24 judges whose most recent office on record is this one, and 10 of them decided cases here in SSA's latest file.
Judges with similar approval rates
These active judges' approval rates over the same 12 months (July 26, 2025 – July 31, 2026) are closest to Judge Woltering's 51%. All five last decided cases in Pennsylvania.
- 51% Approval rate, last 12 months Scott M. Staller
- 51% Approval rate, last 12 months Michael S. Kaczmarek
- 50% Approval rate, last 12 months Tiesh I. Reaves
- 50% Approval rate, last 12 months Jennifer Spector
- 50% Approval rate, last 12 months Timothy Wing
Rates within 5 points of each other are hard to tell apart at a typical caseload, so treat these as judges with comparable records, not a ranking. See Judge Woltering and the three closest side by side →
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
Over the 12 months to July 31, 2026, Luke Woltering's 51% approval rate sits at the lower end of the 50% to 75% range observed among the 10 judges who decided cases at the Elkins Park Hearing Office in the latest SSA file. An attorney can help you prepare for the specific requirements of this judge's bench.
Yes, the rate has shifted over time. Luke Woltering's approval rate was 62% in 2016 and reached a low of 41% in 2021, before moving to 51% over the 12 months to July 31, 2026. An attorney can help you understand how these trends might relate to your case preparation.
No, you cannot request a specific judge. The Social Security Administration uses a workload-balancing algorithm to assign cases, and the judge you are assigned is essentially random. An attorney can help you prepare for your hearing regardless of which judge is assigned.
An approval rate is a probability based on past decisions, not a prediction for your specific hearing. Your outcome depends primarily on the medical evidence and documentation you provide. An attorney can help you ensure your case is as strong as possible before your hearing.
