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Massachusetts ALJ Statistics

Social Security Disability hearing statistics for 3 hearing offices and 17 administrative law judges in Massachusetts.

State Approval Rate

56.5%

vs 58.3% national

Hearing Offices

3

in Massachusetts

ALJs

17

active judges

Avg Wait Time

9.8 months

vs 8 months national

Hearing Offices in Massachusetts

Office ALJs Approval Rate Wait Time Processing Pending
Boston 8 54.6% 10 months 323 days 1,528
Lawrence MA 5 57.6% 10 months 390 days 1,635
Springfield MA 4 58.1% 8 months 296 days 1,321

About Massachusetts Disability Hearings

Disability claimants in Massachusetts have access to 3 SSA hearing offices as part of Region 01. The state's 17 Administrative Law Judges handle the disability hearing caseload across these locations.

The average approval rate across Massachusetts hearing offices is 56.5%, which is close to the national average of 58.3%. This rate aggregates decisions from all judges across the state's hearing offices.

Wait times across Massachusetts offices range from 8 months at the Springfield MA hearing office to 10 months at the Lawrence MA hearing office.

Across all offices, there are 4,484 cases currently pending in Massachusetts, averaging approximately 264 pending cases per judge. Click on any hearing office below to see detailed judge-level statistics and individual approval rates.

Massachusetts Hearing Landscape

Massachusetts's 3 hearing offices each serve different geographic areas of the state. Case assignment is based on the claimant's residential address, so hearing location and judge assignment depend on where the claimant lives rather than personal preference. All statistics on this page are weighted by individual judge caseloads to accurately reflect the volume of cases processed.

With 3 hearing offices, Massachusetts provides multiple venues for disability hearings. Office sizes vary from 4 judges at the Springfield MA hearing office to 8 judges at the Boston 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 Massachusetts, 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.

Massachusetts Disability Hearing FAQ

What are my chances of approval in Massachusetts?
The average ALJ approval rate in Massachusetts is 56.5% for FY 2025. This includes both fully favorable and partially favorable decisions. The national average is 58.3%, putting Massachusetts below the national benchmark. Office-level rates within the state range from 54.6% to 58.1%.
Which cities in Massachusetts have SSA hearing offices?
Massachusetts has 3 SSA hearing offices with a total of 17 administrative law judges. The largest office is the Boston hearing office with 8 judges, while the Springfield MA hearing office has 4. Your hearing office is determined by where you live, and the specific judge is assigned through the office's rotational calendar — neither is chosen by the claimant.
What is the fastest hearing office in Massachusetts?
The Springfield MA hearing office currently has the shortest wait time at 8 months. The longest wait is at the Lawrence MA hearing office at 10 months, a gap of 2.0 months. Note that wait times are point-in-time estimates from SSA reporting and may vary from month to month based on case volume and staffing changes.
How is state data calculated?
Massachusetts's 3 offices handle cases for 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. These figures rely on SSA's publicly released disposition records, which are processed and incorporated into our database as each reporting cycle concludes.
Where does Massachusetts rank in disability hearing outcomes?
Massachusetts is in SSA Region 01. Its average approval rate of 56.5% is below 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 Massachusetts?
Hearing outcomes in Massachusetts 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.

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 Massachusetts?
Your hearing office is determined by where you live, and the specific judge is assigned through the office's rotational calendar — neither is chosen by the claimant. 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. Massachusetts has 3 hearing offices, each serving a defined geographic area within the state.

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