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Florida ALJ Statistics

Social Security Disability hearing statistics for 8 hearing offices and 73 administrative law judges in Florida.

State Approval Rate

59.2%

vs 58.3% national

Hearing Offices

8

in Florida

ALJs

73

active judges

Avg Wait Time

7.2 months

vs 8 months national

Hearing Offices in Florida

Office ALJs Approval Rate Wait Time Processing Pending
Fort Myers FL 5 67.8% 8 months 248 days 600
Ft Lauderdale 11 48.5% 6 months 258 days 2,709
Jacksonville 11 54% 7 months 275 days 1,906
Miami Oho 8 67% 7 months 260 days 1,362
Orlando 11 62.2% 7 months 239 days 1,875
St Petersburg FL Oho 8 62.6% 6 months 209 days 1,012
Tallahassee FL Oho 6 62.9% 6 months 225 days 866
Tampa Oho 13 58.4% 7 months 278 days 2,451

About Florida Disability Hearings

The Social Security Administration operates 8 hearing offices in Florida, falling under SSA Region 04. These offices are staffed by 73 ALJs who preside over disability appeals from claimants throughout the state.

The average approval rate across Florida hearing offices is 59.2%, which is close to the national average of 58.3%. This rate aggregates decisions from all judges across the state's hearing offices. Within the state, office-level approval rates range from 48.5% at the Ft Lauderdale hearing office to 67.8% at the Fort Myers FL hearing office, a 19-point difference.

Wait times across Florida offices range from 6 months at the Tallahassee FL Oho hearing office to 8 months at the Fort Myers FL hearing office.

Across all offices, there are 12,781 cases currently pending in Florida, averaging approximately 175 pending cases per judge. Click on any hearing office below to see detailed judge-level statistics and individual approval rates.

Florida Hearing Landscape

With 8 hearing offices spread across the state, Florida's disability hearing landscape offers multiple points of comparison for attorneys and claimants. Case assignment is determined by residential address, so the specific office — and the judges at that office — depends on where the claimant lives. All statistics on this page are weighted by individual judge caseloads to accurately reflect the volume of cases processed.

With 8 hearing offices, Florida provides multiple venues for disability hearings. Office sizes vary from 5 judges at the Fort Myers FL hearing office to 13 judges at the Tampa Oho hearing office. Cases are assigned to offices based on the claimant's residential address, so hearing location is determined by geography rather than preference.

For attorneys practicing disability law in Florida, understanding the local hearing landscape is an important part of case preparation. The data on this page provides a starting point for evaluating office-level patterns, though individual judge statistics offer more granular insight into decision-making tendencies. Visit individual office pages for judge-level data.

Florida Disability Hearing FAQ

What are my chances of approval in Florida?
The average ALJ approval rate in Florida is 59.2% for FY 2025. This includes both fully favorable and partially favorable decisions. The national average is 58.3%, putting Florida above the national benchmark. Office-level rates within the state range from 48.5% to 67.8%.
Which cities in Florida have SSA hearing offices?
Florida has 8 SSA hearing offices with a total of 73 administrative law judges. The largest office is the Tampa Oho hearing office with 13 judges, while the Fort Myers FL hearing office has 5. The SSA assigns cases to offices according to claimant geography, and judges receive cases through rotation rather than selection.
What is the fastest hearing office in Florida?
The Tallahassee FL Oho hearing office currently has the shortest wait time at 6 months. The longest wait is at the Fort Myers FL hearing office at 8 months, a gap of 2.0 months. Wait time averages reflect the most recently reported SSA data and will evolve as new disposition reports are released.
How is state data calculated?
Florida has 8 offices serving 73 judges across the state. State averages are calculated by aggregating data from all hearing offices within the state. See our methodology page for details on data sources and calculations. Source data comes from the Social Security Administration's public reporting on ALJ decisions, which we incorporate as updates are released.
Where does Florida rank in disability hearing outcomes?
Florida is in SSA Region 04. Its average approval rate of 59.2% is above the national average of 58.3%. For a full comparison of approval rates and wait times across all states, visit the states overview page.
What affects disability hearing results in Florida?
Hearing outcomes in Florida are influenced by several factors including the strength and completeness of medical evidence, vocational factors such as the claimant's age, education, and work history, the quality of legal representation at the hearing, and individual judge decision-making patterns. With 73 active judges across 8 offices, outcomes in Florida reflect a broad range of judicial decision-making patterns.

While all ALJs apply the same federal disability standards, these case-level factors can lead to variation in outcomes across offices and judges.
Can I request a different hearing location in Florida?
Hearing location is determined by the claimant's home address. Within each office, judges are assigned cases through a rotational scheduling system. While transfers between offices are generally not possible based on preference, a change of address that moves you into a different office's service area may result in case reassignment. Florida has 8 hearing offices, each serving a defined geographic area within the state.

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