Judges’ Stats for Philadelphia Social Security Hearings (Sept 2024)

This page is for Social Security Hearings for people who live in or near Philadelphia (except NE Philly), Aramingo, Chester, Westchester, PA, Upper Darby,  Germantown, PA, or Nicetown. For Elkins Park, Allentown, Bethlehem, Easton, Fairless Hills, Limerick, Philadelphia (NE), or Reading Social Security Hearings click on Judge Ratings for Elkins Park PA.

Judge Ratings for Philadelphia Social Security Hearings

Are you wondering if you got a good judge for your Philadelphia (or Philadelphia East) Social Security Hearing for Disability or SSI scheduled in the Office of Hearing Operations (OHO)? There are two hearing offices in Philadelphia, so remember to look at the right one when you’re doing your research.  The Philadelphia hearing office is on market street near City Hall. The Philadelphia East hearing office is on Chestnut Street near the Liberty Bell. See the above picture or read below for the exact addresses and what to expect. Do you want to know everything you can about the where, when, why and how of the hearing itself? You’re not alone, most of my clients desperately want to know every detail of their Disability Hearing so that they have the best chance of winning. Here are all the judges’ statistics and other information that your Social Security Disability Hearing Lawyer would give you leading up to the hearing date.

Judges’ Statistics

The following table is up to date as of September 2024:

The Quality of Philadelphia and Philadelphia East Social Security Judges

The Social Security Hearing Office in Philadelphia has slightly below average judges when it comes to case approval percentages. Philadelphia East Social Security Hearing judges are even worse, with case approval ratings in the 30s and even 20s! Many people still have really good experiences, because some of the staff genuinely care about other people. But many have very bad experiences in Philadelphia because it still is Social Security, run by the government, which is a complete and utter mess. I believe most judges are doing the best they can. Do they get decisions wrong sometimes? Of course, they are human. Only those with very low case approval rates would I call biased.

For example, for Philadelphia East Social Security hearings, Administrative Law Judges Bernadette Reiling and Nycole Watson both have approval ratings in the 20s. They may not be biased but just very skeptical. Any lower than that and bias may be a factor. We can see that Judge Charlie M Johnson has a 16% approval rating but he has less than 50 decisions so that may not be his true case approval rate.

As for Philadelphia, Christine McCafferty has the lowest case approval percentage at 37%. That percentage is actually really not that low. The national average is 54%, to give you an idea of what other judges are doing. Click here to get more information about what makes a good Social Security claim.

Where Will My Hearing Be Held?

Most hearings will be held by phone, the judge’s clerk will call your phone and place you in a conference call. The whole hearing will be held via conference call, it’s actually very efficient. If you have a lawyer the evidence is submitted electronically before the hearing.

If you don’t have a lawyer you’ll have to bring your evidence to the hearing office or mail it in. You can request an in-person hearing, but we don’t advise it. If you do have a in-person hearing or need to submit evidence, check out the photo above from the SSA hearing office locator website. It shows that Philadelphia Social Security hearings are held at the 21st floor in 1601 Market St., Philadelphia PA 19102–9299. The Philadelphia East Social Security hearings are held at Suite 502 in 833 Chestnut St., Philadelphia PA 19107. You’ll go through the metal detectors – don’t bring any weapons, even a pocket knife, or they won’t let you in. Then check in with the staff and wait to be called for your hearing. If you need to reach the Philadelphia Social Security hearing office, also known as the Office of Hearing Operations, call 866-964-6288.  For the Philadelphia East hearing office, call 866-572-9721.

What should I do if I need help with my hearing?

If you do not have a lawyer yet, the Administrative Law Judge (ALJ) presiding over your case will almost always give you a postponement to try to get a lawyer. These hearings are very difficult without a lawyer, and the ALJs rarely get the evidence they need unless a lawyer is involved. If you need a Philadelphia Social Security Disability lawyer, no matter what stage your case is in, call us or email us and we will evaluate your case for free.