The Social Security Administration recently released public use files on its website that provide indicators of productivity of Administrative Law Judges. This data is helpful for claimants that are waiting for a hearing to decide their eligibility for Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) and/or Supplemental Security Income (SSI) benefits. Previously, the majority of this information had to be obtained through Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests. Included in the data is approval and denial information for every Administrative Law Judge.
The Social Security Administration currently only has information available for Fiscal Year 2010. (Social Security’s fiscal year runs from October 1, 2009 through September 30, 2010.) The approval rate information is current through December 2009. Therefore this information only provides approval and denial rate information for the 1st quarter of Fiscal Year 2010. (Previously, the Oregonian and the Delaware News Journal had both made approval rate information available through FOIA requests.)
The information reveals valuable data for claimants waiting for an Administrative Law Judge Hearing. I have summarized some of the most important information for the Dover Delaware Office of Disability Adjudication and Review (ODAR).
Dover Delaware ODAR Notable Statistics – 1st Quarter Data for Fiscal Year 2010
- Average time for hearing to be scheduled: 9 Months (after ALJ request is filed)
- Average days for ALJ Decision: 292 days (after ALJ request is filed)
- Claims Decided: 641 (total dispositions)
- Claims Pending: 1572
Dover Delaware ODAR – Comparative Data (Nationally decisions were issued from 147 different ODAR offices during the 1st quarter of 2010)
- The Dover Delaware Hearing Office had the 5th highest denial rate of any hearing office.
- 40.64% of individuals were denied for SSDI and/or SSI by Dover ODAR.
- Only three ODAR offices nationally had a lower approval rate than the Dover ODAR.
- 43.84% of claimants were approved for SSDI and/or SSI by Dover ODAR.
Based on the information made available by SSA, the Dover ALJ’s had the following approval rates in the 1st quarter of Fiscal Year 2010:
Approval Rates for Dover Delaware Office of Disability Adjudication and Review - 1st Quarter FY 2010
About the Numbers
These numbers tell an interesting story. In my experience it is generally much harder to be approved for benefits by the Dover Delaware hearing office. Currently there are 5 ALJs in Dover. Three of the ALJs approved claims well below the national average. The other two ALJs approved at rates consistent with the national average. The Dover ALJ with the lowest approval rate approved approximately 31% less people than the national average. Overall claims were approved 15% less by Dover ODAR than the national average.
I am very happy that the Social Security Administration has started to publish these numbers. Hopefully this information continues to be updated in the future.
It is important to remember that the averages do not represent your percentage chance of being approved for benefits.
Each case is different, and even though the numbers for Dover ODAR suggest that it is harder to obtain benefits in Delaware, the facts of your individual claim are the best indicator of your success. Even if you are assigned to an ALJ with a higher approval rate, you must still be able to establish that you meet the Social Security Disability requirements to be found disabled.
I use the information that has been made available to help my clients prepare for their hearings. The average wait times help my clients plan for the future. Red flags are raised if it is taking longer for a client to have a hearing scheduled. The approval rates help me determine the type of information that is necessary to document my client’s condition and also to estimate their chance of success.
An experienced attorney will be able to use the new data that has been made available to better assess likelihood of success and to gauge their personal performance. It an attorney reviews this information and determines that they are less successful than average with the ALJs that they practice before, they can use this information to improve their performance. I recommend that individuals review and discuss this information with a legal representative prior to proceeding to a hearing.
Links to Social Security Data
- All Social Security Public Use Data
- Average Wait Time for ALJ Hearing (by ODAR Office)
- ODAR Workload (by ODAR Office)
- Approval & Denial Information for Every ALJ (raw numbers)
- Dispositions per day per ALJ (by ODAR Office)
- Average Processing Time before Disposition (by ODAR Office)
- Hearings by Video Conference versus In-person (by ODAR Office)
This article was written by Steven Butler. Steven is a partner at Linarducci & Butler, PA and his practice is limited to Social Security Disability/SSI claims. Steven offers free initial consultations for Social Security Disability/SSI claims. To schedule a consultation with Steven, please use the Linarducci & Butler Contact Form or call 302-613-0707 to schedule an appointment.
|
Administrative Law Judge |
Approval Rate |
Denial Rate |
Dismissal Rate |
Difference Between Judge & National Average |
|
Banas, Edward |
60.80% |
27.20% |
12.00% |
-1.57% |
|
Benitz, Melvin |
27.68% |
50.89% |
21.43% |
31.56% |
|
Leary, Joseph |
63.16% |
24.06% |
12.78% |
-3.92% |
|
Powell, Barbara |
37.21% |
47.29% |
15.50% |
22.02% |
|
Showalter, Judith |
27.78% |
55.56% |
16.67% |
31.46% |
|
Dover Total |
43.84% |
40.64% |
15.52% |
15.39% |
|
Nationally |
59.23% |
26.65% |
14.11% |
|