James Linehan, Mcalester , Oklahoma city , Wilkes barre , Oklahoma , Oklahoma , Pennsylvania Odar Office, Administrative Law Judge
For the 2015 *fiscal year, Judge James Linehan has disposed 160 cases at the Office of Disability Adjudication and Review (ODAR) in DALLAS DOWNTOWN, TEXAS. Out of those 160 dispostions, 25 were dismissed, 52 were approved and 83 were denied. This means that the percentage of depositions that Judge James Linehan has approved in DALLAS DOWNTOWN for the 2015 fiscal year is 18%. The information below for Judge James Linehan was last updated on 04/28/2023.
AVERAGE STATISTICS
| Office | *Fiscal Year | Total Depositions | Total Decisions | Total Denials | Total Awards | Cases Dismissed | Cases Approved | Cases Denied |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MCALESTER | 2015 | 160 | 135 | 83 | 52 | 16% | 33% | 52% |
| WILKES BARRE | 2015 | 110 | 75 | 39 | 36 | 32% | 33% | 35% |
| MCALESTER | 2016 | 524 | 418 | 213 | 205 | 20% | 39% | 41% |
| MCALESTER | 2017 | 537 | 445 | 229 | 216 | 17% | 40% | 43% |
| OKLAHOMA CITY | 2017 | 19 | 18 | 13 | 5 | 5% | 26% | 68% |
| DALLAS DOWNTOWN | 2018 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0% | 100% | 0% |
| OKLAHOMA CITY | 2018 | 271 | 205 | 120 | 85 | 24% | 31% | 44% |
| OKLAHOMA CITY | 2019 | 473 | 408 | 191 | 217 | 14% | 46% | 40% |
| OKLAHOMA CITY | 2020 | 317 | 259 | 140 | 119 | 18% | 38% | 44% |
AVERAGE TIME
| Dismissed | Approved | Denied | |
|---|---|---|---|
| James Linehan | No Stats for FY2020 | ||
| All ALJs in DALLAS DOWNTOWN | 18% | 45% | 37% |
| All ALJs in TEXAS | 18% | 41% | 40% |
| All ALJs in the Nation | 18% | 45% | 38% |
8 Comments
Awful. If you are here you likely know that any of the negative reviews you’ve read are true. There is something twisted and demented with this person. He twists things against you. Will not listen to what your doctors have to say or you. Sure he may go over the info but if you can not work and or are very limited to where you can not hold a full time job he will assume you are lying about your conditions. He will ask questions he knows the answers to and when you try to elaborate he will cut you off. He will twist your words and play weird word games. He will ask a question and when you give a answer that supports your case he will cut you off. Despicable person.
Yes, this judge does cherry pick evidence . He does turn testimony around to fit his pre formed opinion. He will interrupt you during your testimony , to throw you off track. It seems as though he has already made a decision on your case , before your hearing. If this guy is your judge , I pray for you. Good luck getting the benefits you’ve paid for all of your working life.
This just stuns me! I had the pleasure of working with Mr. Linehan many years ago over my then husbands Federal Workers Comp claim and I couldn’t believe how great he was. Fast, knowledgeable, friendly. So I have to go with my experiences with him as a FWC attorney.
This judge laughed about SSA Paperwork being lost! Years ago when he was a lawyer representing claimants he stated online in a blog (I have a printout) that SSA commonly loses paperwork! Today, after over a year I finally get a copy of the audio recording of the hearing. The main ODAR office has been blocking me getting it! Very obvious of why after listening to it. This judge demonstrated a nasty habit of interrupting me while I was trying to answer a question by asking another question. Unbelievable! Thank goodness I have an attorney now. By the way, the medical and healthcare professionals that regularly see me prior to the hearing and to this day were appalled at his decision and flat out said that his reasoning did not make any sense to them – one even pulls up records they sent and it was obvious they were completely ignored!
Going in with anything less than an attorney with this ALJ will likely result in a swift denial. I went in with a representative, but as they had already found and attorney’s I have spoken to and since retained one, have all said that to them it appears that “this Judge gets messy; even though he knows better; when the claimant is not represented or represented by a non-attorney representative”. They seem to believe he does this because he knows that a non-attorney representative will drop out at this point and it is very hard to get an attorney to come in at the Appeals Council stage. So, you have been warned!
I agree with a previous post regarding not accepting a Video Hearing from ALJ Linehan. You must have a good attorney to deal with this Judge. I have been told by two different attorney’s already that in their experience his decisions are way off base if you either do not have a lawyer as a representative. If you go in with a non-attorney representative (or worse no representative) he knows that you will have difficulty obtaining representation to effectively appeal as a non-attorney representative WILL drop your case following an ALJ Hearing. It would be a good idea also to have your United States Congressman’s office inquire about your claim. He does appear to be particularly biased against Mental Health claims. Two different attorney’s that have dealt with him have told me this.
My experience with this Judge was horrible. He rushes through the hearing, will not let you finish answering a question when you are obviously confused with what he is asking. He will cherry pick anything in your records that he can twist around. And frankly, reading his decision was unbelievable. In several cases this Judge just outright lies. If he doesn’t just blatantly lie in his decision rationale he lies like the Devil by omitting overwhelming records contrary. SHAME on this Judge. He should be removed. Yes I am appealing. Meet with new attorney today! In my opinion this Judge makes his decision before you ever go before him. He does not show any interest in fact gathering that does not meet the opinion he already has made. In my decision he took 1 doctors observation that I saw one time (not even for condition I applied for disability and not a specialist) while ignoring 5+ others (specialists) that saw me regularly and all reported the same thing. Nevermind, that the Doctor opinion he cited negatively in my favor is who gave the referral for me to see specialist. Oh the list goes on and on. Oh, and he thinks that when your medication is changed because you stopped taking it because it didn’t work or had side effects that you can not handle that you are non-compliant in taking medication.
Do NOT accept a video hearing from Judge JAMES LINEHAN! Repeat do NOT accept a video hearing from this judge! He does not pay attention. Be prepared to have the majority of what you say be turned around by him. He is age biased and biased against Mental Health claims. If you have already been victim of Judge JAMES LINEHAN report him to:
Division of Quality Service
One Skyline Tower
5107 Leesburg Pike, Suite 1605
Falls Church, VA 22041
Include as many details as possible in your letter to aid DQS in its investigation. Note that filing a complaint with DQS does not constitute an appeal of your denial or partially favorable decision.
Its fair to say that you will be treated as a person and not a number, ,,,what he asked me I could tell he had read the file.Im sorry for those who deserve a fair chance to tell their story and happen to get a abusive judge, that, he is not. ,Even though it was quick ,I didn’t feel rushed. Very consise and to the point.