Who decides cases at this office
The panel of 9 judges at this office shows a moderate spread in allowance rates, ranging from 44% to 70%. While the median rate of 56% provides a baseline, the variation across the panel means that the judge assigned to your case can influence the tone of your hearing. Because cases are assigned randomly, you cannot choose your judge, making it essential that your file is robust enough to meet the evidentiary standards of any member of the panel.
| Rank | Judge | Approval Rate | Total Decisions | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | John M. Lischak | 86% | 13,426 | |
| 2 | Jeremy G. Eldred | 60% | 23,869 | |
| 3 | Barry E. Ryan | 60% | 4,606 | |
| 4 | Jennifer G. Smith | 59% | 28,141 | |
| 5 | F. P. Flanagan | 59% | 1,008 | |
| 6 | Anna Wright | 57% | 4,690 | |
| 7 | Bruce S. Fein | 56% | 28,916 | |
| 8 | John P. Ramos | 52% | 25,424 | |
| 9 | Robyn L. Hoffman | 51% | 16,348 | |
| 10 | Marie Greener | 50% | 3,989 | |
| 11 | Robert E. Gale | 49% | 1,806 | |
| 12 | Mary J. Pelton | 48% | 7,262 | |
| 13 | Gretchen M. Greisler | 47% | 22,825 | |
| 14 | Kenneth Theurer | 43% | 30,310 | |
| 15 | Elizabeth W. Koennecke | 41% | 19,787 |
Heading to an ALJ hearing? Get a free case review to prepare for your hearing.
Free Benefits ReviewHow long you'll wait
At Syracuse, the average wait from hearing request to written decision is 8 months— versus a national average of 8 months. Here's how it's tracked month by month over the past 16 months.
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.
Going to your hearing
Your hearing will typically involve an ALJ presiding over your testimony. You should bring updated medical records covering the period since your initial denial, as these are the most critical pieces of evidence for your case. A detailed log of your daily activities and a list of medications with their specific side effects can help the judge understand your limitations. During the proceeding, a vocational expert will often testify regarding whether jobs exist that fit your functional capacity. You will have the opportunity to question this expert to clarify how your specific impairments prevent you from working. A final decision is rarely issued on the spot; you will receive the ruling by mail after the hearing concludes.
With a 26-point spread between the lowest and highest allowance rates on the panel, your file must be strong enough to withstand scrutiny from any judge. You can identify the specific vocational gaps in your record that the expert witness might exploit during testimony by pressure-testing your evidence before you walk into the hearing room.
Field offices that route cases here
If your hearing is at Syracuse, your case originated at one of the SSA field offices below — the local intake counter where you (or a representative) filed the initial application. Field offices don't decide hearings, but they hold your file, issue benefit-payment notices, and field the day-to-day questions during your wait.